KI researcher Anna Thor receives grant for studies in testicular cancer
Anna Thor, researcher at the Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology (CLINTEC), has been awarded a research grant from the Swedish Association for Urological Oncology for her research on the treatment of patients with metastatic testicular cancer.
At the annual meeting of the Swedish Association for Urological Oncology (SFUO) in Stockholm on 13 November 2025, Anna Thor received this year's scholarship of SEK 100,000, which is awarded in collaboration with Pfizer.
The purpose is to recognise members with doctoral degrees who conduct research in urological tumour diseases. She is the second researcher to receive the scholarship, which was first awarded last year.
More common among young men
Testicular cancer is the most common cancer among young men, and although the prognosis is very good, important questions remain to be answered.
Anna Thor is investigating whether surgical treatment can be an alternative to cytostatic drugs for certain patients with disseminated seminoma, the type of testicular cancer that is more common among young men, in the early stages. The aim is to reduce the risk of long-term side effects such as cardiovascular disease and secondary malignancies.
"I am very proud and honoured to receive this scholarship from SFUO and Pfizer. Testicular cancer is a relatively rare disease that is easily overshadowed by more common diagnoses such as prostate cancer and bladder cancer," says Anna Thor, Researcher at the Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, and Assistant Senior Physician in Urology at Karolinska University Hospital. She continues:
"My research focuses on a young patient group with metastatic cancer, with the aim of tailoring therapy to the individual patient and reducing the risk of long-term side effects. MicroRNA is one piece of the puzzle, surgery is another.
Anna Thor defended her thesis in February 2025 on microRNA and surgical treatment for testicular cancer. She is also responsible for the national highly specialised care assignment retroperitoneal lymph node dissection at Karolinska University Hospital in Huddinge.
“Through the collaboration between Sweden and Norway within SWENOTECA, we have a unique opportunity to conduct population-based research on this patient group. It feels meaningful to be able to contribute to more young men being able to live healthy lives after their cancer. I also feel that there is great interest in our data among other researchers around the world, which is of course extra motivating,” concludes Anna Thor.
The grant will now support continued population-based research within the framework of the Swedish-Norwegian collaboration SWENOTECA.
The text is based on a press release from Pfizer.