Munich is becoming the medical capital: M1 alliance takes off!

Munich is becoming the medical capital: M1 alliance takes off!

The city of Munich has taken a decisive step towards a leading role in medical research and technology. With the founding of the “M1 – Munich Medicine Alliance” by the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) and Helmholtz Munich, a strategic partnership is being launched with the aim of developing Munich into Germany's leading medical location. The founding ceremony recently took place in the Munich Residence and was an opportunity to celebrate the immense potential of this alliance.

Bavaria's Science Minister Markus Blume emphasized in his speech that the alliance will play a key role in strengthening medical progress and the best possible care for the population. In particular, the focus on improving clinical studies and the targeted use of health data should help to significantly increase the quality of care. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) to develop new forms of therapy is another innovative approach that the alliance would like to pursue. Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann, President of TUM, expressed the wish that the medicine of the future should come from Munich.

International visibility and interdisciplinary collaboration

The M1 Munich Medicine Alliance aims to promote scientific research and innovation in the medical field and to make Munich internationally visible. The alliance's partners include leading institutions such as the LMU and TUM Klinikum as well as Helmholtz Munich, which join forces to advance cutting-edge medical research. The official start of the collaboration will take place this week with a ceremony and a specialist symposium.

The support from the Bavarian Ministry of Science as part of the Highmed Agenda Bavaria underlines the importance of this initiative. The objectives include promoting the transfer of scientific knowledge into patient care and expanding interdisciplinary interfaces between medicine, technology and information technology. Prof. Dr. Dr. Bernd Huber, President of the LMU, emphasizes the strengthening of university medicine in Munich through this alliance, while Prof. Dr. Dr. Matthias Tschöp, CEO of Helmholtz Munich, highlights synergies and potential for medical research.

Research in times of change

Medical research in Germany has made strong progress in recent years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, future challenges such as infectious diseases, cancer and diabetes lie ahead, and this is where the new alliance comes into play. According to that BMBF 60% of premature deaths worldwide are related to cardiovascular diseases, a fact that underlines the urgency of innovative approaches in medicine.

The basis for successful medical research lies not only in the discovery of new therapies, but also in the practical applicability of these findings. Examples such as the development of new drugs and therapies illustrate the challenges and opportunities. The NAKO health study is being carried out with around 200,000 participants in order to closely examine common diseases and find long-term solutions.

The path from new clinical findings to application requires extensive testing and efficient organization. This makes it all the more important to create common infrastructures within the new alliance, which should enable the innovative research results to be implemented more quickly into patient care. This development could be crucial for sustainably improving medical care and establishing Munich as an innovation metropolis for the future of medicine.