The Assar Gabrielsson Foundation has awarded Ketan Thombare as the winner in the basic science research category and Louise Carstam and Ella Äng Eklund as the winner in the clinical research category. The prize recipients will receive SEK 100,000 each as extra research grants, administered by the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg.

The Assar Gabrielssons Award 2026 for clinical research is given to Louise Carstam

For clinically important and well‑conducted research on factors influencing prognosis in adults with low‑grade brain tumors. The studies provide new knowledge on the importance of better classifying these tumors so that the most appropriate treatment can be selected."Reason behind the decision"

Louise Carstam is a senior consultant and neurosurgeon at Sahlgrenska University Hospital. In her doctoral work, she has combined clinical practice with research on diffuse low-grade gliomas — a type of brain tumor that often presents with a first epileptic seizure in otherwise asymptomatic young adults. The disease is incurable and tends over time to progress into a more aggressive form of cancer. Effective treatments exist, but determining the optimal timing is challenging, as some patients live for many decades and may suffer from late adverse effects of both radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Through collaboration with preclinical researchers, tumor tissue has been classified using modern molecular methods, and detailed clinical data have been collected systematically. This has generated new knowledge about which factors predict an aggressive disease course, thereby providing better guidance on when early intensive treatment is beneficial for the patient and when it may be preferable to wait.

The Assar Gabrielssons Award 2026 for basic scientific research is given to Ketan Thombare

For advanced basic and translational research on malignant neuroblastoma in children. The studies provide increased understanding of molecular mechanisms in the form of RNA modifications and demonstrate how this knowledge could be applied in future cancer treatments "Reason behind the decision"

Ketan Thombare is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. His research centers on understanding how RNA modifications regulate cancer biology, with a particular emphasis on high-risk neuroblastoma.
He defended his thesis in 2024 at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, inves-tigating the role of N⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A) RNA methylation in telomere maintenance and tumor cell identity. This work identified m⁶A as a regulator of the telomeric RNA TERRA and demonstrated its role in alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) and MYCN-driven tumor biology.
These findings contribute to understanding RNA-mediated mechanisms underlying tumor cell identity in aggressive neuroblastoma. Research from this work has been published in journals including The EMBO Journal and Nucleic Acids Research.
Current research focuses on RNA biology, genome regulation, and translational approaches in cancer, with the long-term goal of contributing to the development of targeted therapies.