Viewpoint

Twelve early-career researchers who started their independent research groups in 2025 reflect on their experiences from this first year of the journey, describe the opportunities they have had and the challenges they have faced, and share their hopes and plans for the future.

Five experts share their thoughts on key areas of focus in multidisciplinary cancer research for the upcoming years. They discuss the research approaches, tools, technologies, collaborations and way of thinking the lab of the future should integrate.

The editors of Nature Cancer share their thoughts on five years of the journal: the science, what being an editor means to them, and what lies ahead.

Twelve early-career researchers who embarked on their independent research paths in 2024 reflect on their experience from their journey so far, describe the opportunities they received and the challenges they faced, and share their hopes and plans for the future.

Twelve early-career investigators share their thoughts on the experiences they had starting their laboratories in 2023 and reflect on the opportunities they seized and the challenges they faced.

The Nature Cancer editors share their thoughts on the highs (and some of the lows) of 2022.

Twelve early career investigators share experiences from the process of starting their laboratories throughout the past year, and reflect on the challenges faced and the opportunities seized.

Tumor mutational burden (TMB) has received significant attention within ongoing pursuits of biomarkers of response to immune checkpoint inhibitors, and notably received FDA approval as a companion diagnostic biomarker for pembrolizumab. Here, four experts discuss the utility, challenges, and open questions surrounding TMB in the context of cancer immunotherapy.

Twelve early-career investigators share their thoughts on the challenges faced by their teams and communities during the past year, and look ahead to new opportunities for 2022.

Filtered through the analytical power of artificial intelligence, the wealth of available biomedical data promises to revolutionize cancer research, diagnosis and care. In this Viewpoint, six experts discuss some of the challenges, exciting developments and future questions arising at the interface of machine learning and oncology.

Cancer research in recent years has been marked by significant developments in understanding disease biology and foundational discoveries that have changed clinical practice. Ten cancer researchers take stock of the field, the advances that excite them, key outstanding questions and breakthroughs they anticipate looking forward.