Barbara Grünwald is a trained Molecular Biotechnologist with a PhD in Experimental Medicine from the Technical University in Munich. Following a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (PMCC) in Toronto, she now holds dual appointments at the University Hospital Essen and at PMCC. Her work is centred around the premise that cancer heterogeneity at the cellular and spatial level is not random noise but a fundamental basis on which solid tumor tissues operate. Current research in Grünwald lab is focused on tumor-host interactions in solid tumors with a particular emphasis on pancreatic cancer and tissue self-organizational mechanisms that underlie malignant behavior, immune function, and drug resistance. Her team applies a systems biology approach that combines traditional methods such as histopathology with state-of-the-art multimodal profiling techniques, applied to human tissues and patient-derived 3D models. In close collaboration with partners from the clinic, the Grünwald lab strives to develop mechanistic insights into tumor heterogeneity along with tools to effectively navigate this phenomenon during clinical decision making.