Hospitals are centres for research, as well as for clinical services, and may accommodate staff engaged on fundamental research as well as clinicians focused on patient care. It is known that this dual role has the potential to undermine performance in each area. However, it is also the case that the treatment of patients benefits from interactions between the doctors who have to identify appropriate therapies and the scientists who collect the data which may contribute to new knowledge and improvements in care. Working with patients generates questions which inspire fundamental research; fundamental research benefits from concrete cases. Architecture can promote or frustrate interaction between the two types or professionals. But how does this work in practice? And, more importantly, does it really improve medical outcomes and boost scientific progress? Is it possible to substantiate claims that is does? In this session the Institut Imagine in Paris (France) by Atelier Jean Nouvel and Valero Gadan Architectes, the Cancer Treatment Centre of Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospital in London (UK) by Roger Stirk Harbour + partners and Stantec, and the National Center for Tumor Diseases in Heidelberg (Germany) by Behnisch Architekten take centre stage.