6 Jul 2026
BioMedLake Project Launch Conference
The University of Medicine and Pharmacy „Carol Davila” Bucharest announces the launch of the „Bioinnovative Center for Integrated Medical Data and Research in Bucharest” project – BioMedLake, project code 350221, a strategic initiative dedicated to developing biomedical research infrastructure, integrating medical data, and accelerating national collaboration in medical research.
„Today we stand before an initiative with national impact, one with the potential to change how we understand, organise and make use of medical data for the benefit of research, innovation and, ultimately, patients. BioMedLake is not merely a digital infrastructure project. It is a project that opens a new stage in the collaboration between universities, hospitals, research institutes, public authorities and technology partners, in a field essential to the future of medicine: the responsible use of medical data, innovative technologies and artificial intelligence,” said the Rector of UMF „Carol Davila” Bucharest, Prof. Dr. Viorel Jinga.
The project is funded through the European Regional Development Fund, under the Health Programme, through the call „Support for STEP-compatible projects submitted under the health-related project idea call run by the Health Programme Managing Authority.” The total value of the project is RON 99,676,414.00, with funding provided entirely by the European Regional Development Fund. Through its objectives, BioMedLake aligns with the European Union's efforts to support STEP-compatible initiatives aimed at developing strategic technologies, strengthening advanced digital infrastructure, and accelerating innovation with impact in healthcare.
The beneficiary and partnership lead is the University of Medicine and Pharmacy „Carol Davila” Bucharest, together with partners: the National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest, the Genomics Research and Development Institute, the National Institute of Research and Development for Biological Sciences, and the Special Telecommunications Service. The project director is Assoc. Prof. Dr. Octavian Andronic, coordinator of the Center for Innovation and e-Health at UMF „Carol Davila”.
The project's overall objective is to develop and implement an integrated digital ecosystem for medical research based on large-volume clinical and genomic data, aiming to increase the research-development-innovation capacity of the partners and facilitate the transfer of research results into medical practice.
The project will build a complex Data Lake and HPC infrastructure dedicated to the collection, secure storage and processing of data from at least 30 partner medical units. This infrastructure will be complemented by an integrated medical research platform, including a patient mobile application, a clinical trial management system, research dashboards and connectivity interfaces.
A central element of the project is the development and validation of three artificial intelligence modules with direct applicability in medical research: a module for curating, harmonising and semantically standardising clinical data; a module for semantic querying and multimodal clinical meta-search; and a module dedicated to clinical registries, cohorting, eligibility screening and research cohort identification.
„Through BioMedLake, the University of Medicine and Pharmacy „Carol Davila” Bucharest and its partners aim to strengthen the interoperability of medical data nationally by aligning with international standards and by encouraging the secondary use of aggregated medical data for research purposes, the development of clinical decision-support algorithms, and the responsible implementation of artificial intelligence in healthcare,” said BioMedLake project director, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Octavian Andronic.
The project will support the development of multicentre clinical trials, retrospective research, personalised medicine, and advanced training for researchers and medical staff. In addition, 20 scientific articles will be published and two dissemination conferences will be organised, contributing to increasing the international visibility of Romanian medical research. Dissemination will also take place through participation in relevant national and international conferences.
„BioMedLake represents a strategic investment in the infrastructure needed for the secondary use of medical data for research and innovation, in line with the objectives of the European Health Data Space (EHDS). In Romania, this field is still developing, and through this project we aim for UMF „Carol Davila”, together with its partners, to help build a national pillar for the responsible use of medical data through advanced digital technologies and artificial intelligence, in line with the European priorities promoted through the STEP initiative,” said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ștefan Busnatu, Vice-Rector for information infrastructure development, digitalisation and innovative technologies at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy „Carol Davila” Bucharest.
BioMedLake opens the way to accelerating collaboration between universities, hospitals, research institutes, public authorities and technology structures, contributing to the development of a modern infrastructure for medical research in Romania and connecting it with European directions on innovation, medical data and digital transformation in healthcare.
More information about the BioMedLake project: https://biomedlake.umfcd.ro
Project director: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Octavian Andronic
Press contact: biomedlake@umfcd.ro
