Martin Sprick

Dr. Martin Sprick is a Senior Group Leader at HI-STEM (Heidelberg Institute for Stem Cell Technology and Experimental Medicine), affiliated with Heidelberg University Hospital and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ). His research focuses on cancer stem cells and metastasis biology, particularly in pancreatic cancer and therapy resistance.

• Biology of metastasis-inducing cancer stem cells (MICs)
• Development of diagnostic biomarkers for MIC detection
• Mechanisms of drug resistance in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
• Collaboration with Merck-Serono for therapeutic development

His work includes molecular characterization of tumor subtypes and identification of resistance mechanisms against paclitaxel and tyrosine-kinase inhibitors. Key collaborations span Heidelberg University Hospital, National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), and Institute of Tumor Biology Hamburg.

Notable contributions include the discovery of CYP3A5-mediated drug resistance (Nature Medicine, 2016) and efforts to develop next-generation diagnostics for advanced cancers.