Project Worth 17.6 Billion KRW
To Be Conducted Over Three Years Until 2027
Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital announced on July 1 that it has been selected as the lead research and development institution for the Ministry of Health and Welfare's 2025 core R&D project, "Establishment and Development of a Digital Bio Smart Clinical Support Platform."
This project will be carried out over three years until 2027, with a total budget of 17.6 billion KRW. Through the K-HOPE (Korea-Hwasun Oncology Precision biomedicine&Experimental trials) project, the hospital plans to establish a digital-based precision clinical trial system. Digital bio-specialized companies such as IT Eyes Co., Ltd., JS Link Co., Ltd., and C&R Research Co., Ltd. will participate as industry-academia cooperation partners, increasing the potential for practical application.
The core of this project is to digitize the national strategic asset, the human biobank, and combine it with artificial intelligence (AI) to discover personalized treatment methods for each patient.
Over the past 15 years, Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital has accumulated samples, genetic information, and treatment data from approximately 40,000 cancer patients. Based on this data, the hospital plans to develop a system that predicts the optimal treatment for each patient, even for the same type of cancer, depending on genetic or immune status. In addition, by integrating cutting-edge digital convergence technologies such as digital twins, the metaverse, and AI, the hospital aims to lower the barriers to clinical trial entry and increase both the probability of success and reliability.
The goal is to achieve over 90% reliability compared to conventional clinical trials by digitally converting medical data, generating virtual control groups, and developing standardized protocols for tissue cross-reactivity (TCR) testing. The hospital will also establish a metaverse-based smart clinical trial center and a virtual clinical protocol platform, fully digitizing the entire clinical trial process and dramatically increasing the speed and efficiency of research and development.
Cho Sanghee, Director of the Clinical Trial Center and the principal investigator, stated, "This project, which will serve as the starting point for the digital bio ecosystem, will enhance the global competitiveness of medical technology and become a catalyst for advancing bio-health research and development."
Kim Hyungseok, Director of the Biomedical Research Institute, emphasized, "By using the Future Medical Innovation Center as a base, we will establish a foundation for immune vaccine development, and this will become a key driving force for being selected as the third phase national advanced medical complex and for advancing the specialized cluster of the national bio-advanced strategic industry."
Min Jungjun, Director of the hospital, said, "Being selected for this project signals Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital's emergence as a leading institution in future medical innovation, a driving force in the national bioindustry, and a hub for cancer treatment in Asia. This achievement is thanks to the full support of Jeollanam-do and Hwasun-gun, and it stands as a representative model of collaboration among local government, industry, academia, hospitals, and research institutes."
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