Freiburg University Medicine
Freiburg University Medicine stands for research, teaching, and care that combines scientific excellence with social responsibility. Doctors, researchers, and students work here side by side in an attractive environment characterized by openness, interdisciplinary exchange, and international diversity. Thanks to a close link between research and practice and our extensive transfer activities, the medical innovations and novel treatment methods developed in this environment are of direct benefit to patients and society. The quality of the medical research conducted at the University Medical Center and the University is reflected in high third-party funding levels and in numerous accolades.
approx. 15000 employees
approx. 90000 inpatients per year
nearly 1000000 outpatient visits
The research strength of Freiburg University Medicine is particularly evident in the five foci of its research profile:
- Genetics and epigenetics, a field that holds great potential for new diagnostic and therapeutic pathways – characterized by close cooperation with the Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics in Freiburg.
- Immunology and infectiology, with internationally leading research on autoimmunity, immunodeficiencies, and chronic inflammation – consolidated at the Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency and several collaborative research centres.
- Molecular cell and tissue research, for example at collaborative research centres and the Cluster of Excellence CIBSS – Centre for Integrative Biological Signalling Studies, where researchers investigate biological signalling processes – the language of cells that determines whether a person will be healthy or sick.
- Neurosciences, in which scientists investigate immune mechanisms in the brain and make advances in the understanding of neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s or MS – for instance at the collaborative research centres NeuroMac and IN-CODE.
- Oncology, with a direct path from basic research to the hospital – supported by collaborative research centres and the Comprehensive Cancer Center Freiburg (CCCF) at the University Medical Center, one of Germany’s leading cancer centres.
These research foci are connected by two cross-cutting topics that promote both the performance of the research foci and their positive impact on patients and society:
Innovation in translation: Translation stands for the transfer of scientific discoveries from the lab to concrete clinical applications. Freiburg University Medicine concentrates on expediting this process, among other things in order to usher in an era of personalized medicine with the aim of improving patient care.
Medical data sciences: Novel approaches in this interdisciplinary field are driving a fundamental change in biomedical research and healthcare. The aim is to harness numerous data sources and technologies like artificial intelligence to gain scientific knowledge and make better decisions for patients.
110 million euros in third-party funding per year
14 collaborative research centres, CRC/transregios, and priority programmesamme
State-of-the-art infrastructure enables top-level research
The research strength of Freiburg University Medicine is also evidenced by infrastructure that sets standards:
- A 7 tesla research MRI scanner under DFG funding reveals previously invisible tissue structures.
- The new Technology Innovations Lab (TIL) will expedite the development of prototypes for radiation therapy.
- The coordination of the statewide Photon Counting CT consortium enables important insight and progress in radiological diagnostics.
- Freiburg heads the digital PC3 platform and is the driving force behind the ‘Forum  Gesundheitsstandort  Baden-Württemberg’ (Health Region Baden-Württemberg Forum), as well as the global cardiological reference hospital for Siemens Healthineers.
A strong university medical facility in a strong network
An alliance of 14 SFB/TRR projects and numerous DFG research groups sets the stage for exceptional scientific depth. It forms the basis for a strong network in which university medicine collaborates closely with Freiburg’s non-university research institutes and well beyond: Freiburg University Medicine plays a leading role as a partner site of the German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), a founding member of the umbrella organization University Medicine BW, and the driving force behind the German-French data initiative Clinnova. At the same time, the federal model project PM4Onco is creating an AI-supported platform for personalized oncology to provide the technological underpinnings for this high standard.
This outstanding research landscape is complemented by 16 academic teaching hospitals that form a close-knit network of training and care facilities, thus raising the regional standard in the area of patient care to a high level of quality. These connections lead to an ecosystem that does not just produce innovation but also has an immediate effect on patients. Freiburg ranks among the ten cities with the most startups in national comparison. A significant share of these new companies, such as Resuscitec, CoreTec, Emunotherapeutics, and HeartGate, are Freiburg University Medicine spinoffs founded with support from Campus Technologies Freiburg GmbH, which has served since 2001 as the innovation agency for the University of Freiburg and the Medical Center – University of Freiburg.
Decorations and Prizes
Research with an impact: Prof. Dr Robert Zeiser
The research of Prof. Dr Robert Zeiser focuses on the question of why immune cells suddenly attack healthy tissue and how this can happen after a stem cell transplantation. Instead of merely fighting the symptoms of such life-threatening reactions, Zeiser is searching for the underlying mechanisms. He has identified signalling paths in the body that play a crucial role in an overreaction of the immune system and has discovered how to influence them specifically. This served as the basis for new drugs that are in worldwide use today.
Digital data medicine: Prof. Dr Dr Melanie Börries
Prof. Dr Dr Melanie Börries looks at the tumour environment in her research with AI models to predict which patients would benefit from particular treatments. Börries represents nine university hospitals in her position as spokesperson of the nationwide MIRACUM consortium, a part of the Medical Informatics Initiative. The consortium edits research and clinical data to provide doctors with reliable personalized recommendations for therapies at tumour board meetings. The result: less trial and error, more customized treatment, and a more targeted treatment of cancer.
Basic research meets hospital: Prof. Dr Marco Prinz
Prof. Dr Marco Prinz studies the functioning of the immune system in the brain and has shown that the brain is not an immunologically shielded space. Immune cells like the so-called microglia are in constant contact with their environment. They play a role in diseases like Alzheimer’s or multiple sclerosis – sometimes positive, sometimes negative. With innovative methods like single-cell analysis, Prinz succeeded in demonstrating that there are different kinds of microglia and that they respond differently depending on the situation. That opens up new horizons for more targeted and conservative therapies.
A commitment to quality – an investment in the future
Conducting outstanding research also means taking on responsibility for the quality of this research. Freiburg University Medicine has therefore established a structured quality culture extending far beyond classical performance monitoring, including clear milestones, intelligent auditing formats, and an approach that promotes development instead of inhibiting it. This helps make our university medicine more competitive – in terms of administration, strategy, and research support.