idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft

Nachrichten, Termine, Experten

Grafik: idw-Logo
idw-Abo

idw-News App:

AppStore

Google Play Store



Instanz:
Teilen: 
01.06.2026 13:41

Central Institute of Mental Health joins international Lancet Commission on schizophrenia

Torsten Lauer Referat Kommunikation und Medien
Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit

    The Central Institute of Mental Health (CIMH) in Mannheim is part of an international initiative aimed at improving research and care for schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. The new Lancet Commission – initiated by the renowned medical journal The Lancet – brings together leading scientists and clinicians to systematically assess the current state of research and develop recommendations for the future.

    Schizophrenia and related disorders affect around 23 million people worldwide. They are among the most complex psychiatric disorders, are often difficult to treat, and frequently place a substantial burden on affected individuals, their families, and healthcare systems.

    New impetus for research and care

    Despite major advances, significant gaps in knowledge and care remain, particularly in early detection, individualized treatment, and long-term support. The aim of the Lancet Commission is to consolidate existing scientific evidence, identify knowledge gaps, and define priorities for research, treatment, and health policy. The perspectives of people with lived experience and their relatives will also be systematically incorporated. In addition, differences between countries and healthcare systems, as well as issues related to stigma, will be taken into account. The findings are intended to contribute to more targeted, individualized, and effective treatment approaches.

    Keeping patients’ perspectives at the center

    The CIMH is one of the key collaborating partners in the global initiative. “The Commission brings together world-leading experts to integrate different perspectives and advance research and care in a targeted way,” says Prof. Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Director of the CIMH and Medical Director of its Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. “Above all, we want to focus on the issues that are truly relevant to affected individuals. By combining new technologies and neurobiological methods with a participatory approach, we hope to achieve meaningful progress.”

    New approaches through international collaboration

    Mental disorders are diagnosed, treated, and socially perceived differently around the world. At the same time, new technologies and neurobiological methods create opportunities to re-examine existing data and research from new perspectives. International collaboration across borders is therefore essential to fully harness this potential and foster new ideas, insights, and approaches.

    CIMH contributes scientific and clinical expertise

    The CIMH plays a central role in connecting European research institutions and contributes its particular strength in combining clinical expertise with neuroscience research. This includes the analysis of large multimodal datasets as well as the involvement of people with lived experience in research processes. The goal is to improve understanding of mental disorders and further develop personalized treatment approaches in the spirit of precision psychiatry.

    In addition to Meyer-Lindenberg, the researchers involved from the institute include Dr. Dilsa Altinok, physician; Moritz Spangemacher, physician; and Dr. Bruno Pedraz, clinician scientist and physician.

    Final report

    The final report of the Lancet Commission is expected in 2028. It is intended to provide an important foundation for future research, clinical practice, and health policy decisions.

    About CIMH

    The Central Institute of Mental Health (CIMH) stands for internationally outstanding research and pioneering treatment concepts in psychiatry and psychotherapy, child and adolescent psychiatry, psychosomatics and addiction medicine. The CIMH clinics provide psychiatric care for the population of Mannheim. At the CIMH, mentally ill people of all ages can rely on the most advanced treatments based on international standards of knowledge. Educating people about mental illness, creating understanding for those affected and strengthening prevention is another important part of our work. In psychiatric research, the CIMH is one of the leading institutions in Europe. Since 2021, it has been a site of the German Centre for Mental Health. The CIMH is institutionally linked to the University of Heidelberg through jointly appointed professors from the Medical Faculty Mannheim. The CIMH is a member of the Health + Life Science Alliance Heidelberg Mannheim.


    Bilder

    Merkmale dieser Pressemitteilung:
    Journalisten
    Medizin
    überregional
    Forschungs- / Wissenstransfer, Kooperationen
    Englisch


     

    Hilfe

    Die Suche / Erweiterte Suche im idw-Archiv
    Verknüpfungen

    Sie können Suchbegriffe mit und, oder und / oder nicht verknüpfen, z. B. Philo nicht logie.

    Klammern

    Verknüpfungen können Sie mit Klammern voneinander trennen, z. B. (Philo nicht logie) oder (Psycho und logie).

    Wortgruppen

    Zusammenhängende Worte werden als Wortgruppe gesucht, wenn Sie sie in Anführungsstriche setzen, z. B. „Bundesrepublik Deutschland“.

    Auswahlkriterien

    Die Erweiterte Suche können Sie auch nutzen, ohne Suchbegriffe einzugeben. Sie orientiert sich dann an den Kriterien, die Sie ausgewählt haben (z. B. nach dem Land oder dem Sachgebiet).

    Haben Sie in einer Kategorie kein Kriterium ausgewählt, wird die gesamte Kategorie durchsucht (z.B. alle Sachgebiete oder alle Länder).