From Vision to International Movement
It’s been ten years since a personal cancer diagnosis and a deep love for the mountains gave rise to an idea that now inspires people across Europe and beyond. In this in-depth anniversary interview, founder and president Petra Thaller looks back on a remarkable decade.
Milestones at a Glance
What began in 2015 with a simple website quickly grew into a recognized NGO. In the founding year itself, the European Commission took notice of OAC. The breakthrough came with the first EU project, in cooperation with the Technical University of Munich.
European Projects as a Growth Engine
Today, OAC can look back on an impressive track record of EU-funded projects: from Outdoor Against Cancer: Move Yourself, Go Out and Live (OAC: my goal), to the €2.5 million initiative Outdoor Against Cancer Connects Us (OACCUs), and Rock Your HEALTH (RYHEALTH), a health education program for European schools.
OAC’s overarching goals: education, training, and physical activity, including evidence-based outdoor training, to reach as many people affected by cancer and their social circles as possible.
Innovation Meets Evidence: The 4×4 Training
The latest milestone is OAC’s evidence-based 4×4 Training for cancer patients and their support networks, launched in Munich in April 2025.
Adapted from elite Norwegian sports training, this interval-based program has already mobilized over 120 interested participants via chat groups at one location in Munich – an impressive start.
Next steps: scaling the program at local, regional, national, and international levels, with the overarching goal of establishing OAC’s 4×4 Training as a fixed component of oncology care.
Autumn Highlights: European Society for Medical Oncology | ESMO and New Partnerships
The coming months will bring exciting developments:
At Europe’s largest oncology congress, this year’s ESMO in Berlin (October 17-21), OAC will be featured in multiple sessions. Among other activities, OAC will participate in the panel discussion of the ESMO Patient Advocacy Connection Forum 2026, organized by MSD, under the main theme Unlocking Artificial Intelligence: Advancing Cancer Care with Patients at the Center. Detailed information on the additional program highlights and discussions in which OAC will take part during ESMO will follow in a separate communication.
At the same time, OAC’s scientific team is working at full speed on the upcoming training course Introduction to Exercise in Cancer, set to launch digitally in 2026.
Interview with OAC’s Founder & President Petra Thaller
Susa Schreiner: 10 years of Outdoor Against Cancer. How did OAC evolve between 2015 and 2025 from a personal vision into a Europe-wide movement for cancer patients and survivors?
Petra Thaller, OAC Founder and President: The personal vision grew out of my 53 years of life experience and ultimately from how I deal with challenges.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, I made a decision: I would continue living my life just as I had before. I would take responsibility for myself and my children.
Even during chemotherapy, I spent as much time as possible in the mountains, ran along the Isar River, and kept training – both endurance and strength. Sometimes it was easy, sometimes harder, but I was always outside.
One day, during a winter ski tour with a friend, he suggested creating something around “being active outdoors” for people with cancer. My first reaction was: No, not now. First I need to get well.
But that thought stuck with me. And so, aligned with my passion for being active in nature, I founded Outdoor Against Cancer even though I was still undergoing chemotherapy.
S. Schreiner: And what have been the key milestones in OAC’s journey over the past ten years?
P. Thaller: The first people I want to acknowledge are my business partners from the outdoor sports industry. Back then, I was the editor of the digital mountain sports magazine Mountains4U. In April 2015, a number of advertisers and partners from the outdoor world supported me financially so I could launch the first OAC website and develop a brand identity.
Just a few months later, in July 2015, the European Outdoor Group (EOG) gave me the chance to present the OAC idea, using sport and outdoor activity as cancer prevention, to 120 invited journalists at the Outdoor trade fair. That was a major early milestone in our 10-year history.
Our initial website then caught the attention of the Policy Department of the European Commission, which invited me to speak at the European Parliament in Brussels. The workshop, “The fight against cancer is a team sport: the role of education and sports”, emphasized how important sport and education are in the fight against cancer. Together with high-level representatives from the International Olympic Committee, the European Commission, and the World Health Organization, we pushed this topic forward on the European stage.
Five years later, on February 3rd, 2021, the European Commission officially presented Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. Since I’m someone who takes action, I wrote directly to Yves Le Lostecque, the Head of the Erasmus Mundus and Sport Unit, right after that workshop to ask about funding opportunities for OAC. Shortly after, I was invited to Brussels for the SPORTInfo Day – and that’s how everything started. Together with the Technical University of Munich, we submitted our first project proposal. It didn’t succeed. But our second attempt scored 96 out of 100 points – the foundation for what is now the internationally certified OAC-Training, accredited by the Bavarian Medical Association (60 CME credits).
S. Schreiner: EU projects have been a key tool in OAC’s development. Which of these projects stand out, and how have they helped shape long-term health promotion and cancer prevention across Europe?
P. Thaller: EU projects are absolutely essential to OAC’s development. Especially worth highlighting is OAC: my goal – Outdoor Against Cancer – Move Yourself, Go Out and Live. The core message then and now is: Everyone is responsible for their own health. With OAC: my goal, we successfully completed our first EU-funded project in 2021. After that, the European Cancer Plan triggered the first calls from the Digital Health Agency. In response, OAC’s scientific team developed several projects in 2021 and 2022, including OACCUs – Outdoor Against Cancer Connects Us (€2.5 million in funding) and RYHEALTH – Rock Your HEALTH (€1.2 million). OACCUs and RYHEALTH are part of the 27 official initiatives under Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan and I’m proud of that. Other projects like the Horizon Europe research initiative SUN XR, the Erasmus+ Sport project UCanACT, and Active Aging also make vital contributions by putting digital innovation and healthy aging center stage.
S. Schreiner: Outdoor physical activity is at the heart of OAC. What specific training solutions has OAC developed to meet the unique needs of people with cancer, survivors, and their support networks?
P. Thaller: At the end of the day, the most important step is simply stepping out the front door. We all know the feeling: when you’re not doing well but still manage to pull yourself outside, it helps you clear your head. The green of the leaves, the blue sky, birdsong, freshly cut grass, salty sea air – all of that helps us feel a little bit happier. And once you add movement or sport, even more positive things happen in and with our bodies and minds. That has always been, and still is, my foundation for life.
I wanted to share this with other cancer patients, too. On December 3rd, 2015, I personally led the very first functional training session at the fitness trail along the Isar meadows in Munich. By a patient, for other patients. Even back then, it brought together people affected by cancer and their social circles, got them moving, and had a lasting, positive impact on their lifestyles. Some of the participants from that very first session are still taking part in OACs 4×4 Training in Munich.
Together with sports physiologist Rūdolfs Cešeiko, Ph.D., our colleague from Riga, OAC’s scientific team developed the 4×4 Training specifically for cancer patients. Cešeiko himself is a young cancer survivor and has been researching in this field for many years. The foundation of our evidence-based 4×4 Training, currently offered in Munich and Riga, is an interval training method from elite sports, originally developed by Norwegian scientists and later successfully applied in cardiology. Today, our chat groups in Munich and Riga count more than 300 active people, either participating in or interested in the training, a great success in such a short time. Our goal is to scale this offer to more cities: free training sessions in city parks, open to everyone. Because cancer often brings not only loneliness, but also financial strain. Since 2015, OAC has been supported by the Breast Center of the LMU Clinics. And with the cooperation agreement signed in April 2025 with the CCC MünchenLMU – Comprehensive Cancer Center, this partnership is now officially in place.
S. Schreiner: Is there an overarching goal here?
P. Thaller: OAC’s aim is to establish the 4×4 Training as a fixed component of supportive cancer therapy. But that takes time. At the same time, it’s just as important for us to share knowledge and train professionals. Very soon, we will launch the digital OAC training course on the 4×4 Training Method, and in the first quarter of 2026, we’ll follow up with the digital OAC course Introduction to Exercise in Cancer. Both programs inform, empower, and guide patients, survivors, and healthcare professionals alike.
S. Schreiner: To make such important work possible, funding is essential. What specific benefits and impacts can companies expect when they support the 4×4 Training financially, and how does this kind of sponsorship contribute to their social engagement and brand image?
P. Thaller: The principle is simple: every company has a location and can cover the costs of 4×4 Training for that community for one year. In doing so, companies not only finance a scientifically validated prevention program for people with cancer but also contribute to the training of exercise professionals, physiotherapists, physicians, and sports scientists. At the same time, they invest in the health of their own employees: the training is open to all, strengthens resilience, performance, and team spirit. Visibility, societal impact, and authentic CSR go hand in hand here – a contribution to primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention that starts locally and resonates internationally.
S. Schreiner: Looking ahead to the coming months: what opportunities will OAC use this fall to raise awareness about the importance of exercise in cancer? Where can we see and experience OAC?
P. Thaller: The coming months bring exciting developments. At Europe’s largest oncology congress, this year’s ESMO in Berlin (October 17-21), OAC will be represented in several ways. We will be part of the panel discussion at the ESMO Patient Advocacy Connection Forum 2026, organized by MSD, with the theme “Unlocking Artificial Intelligence: Advancing Cancer Care with Patients at the Center.” Because alongside exercise and community experiences, AI and extended reality are, for us, key building blocks of the cancer therapy of tomorrow. With this, we emphasize that Physical Activity is a central component of modern cancer prevention and therapy.
S. Schreiner: What other initiatives are in the pipeline?
P. Thaller: Our scientific team is currently working on the evidence-based “Introduction to Exercise in Cancer”, a digital program designed to inform, strengthen, and guide cancer patients, survivors, and healthcare professionals. Built on leading scientific evidence and the clinical expertise of specialists in exercise oncology, the course takes participants through three interconnected phases:
- Phase 1 – Fundamentals: Why physical activity is essential in cancer therapy and the mechanisms behind it.
- Phase 2 – Principles & Preparation: How much activity is recommended, and how it can be integrated into daily life and adapted to individual circumstances.
- Phase 3 – Practice: The 4×4 Method: How the health benefits can be optimized through the evidence-based 4×4 Method – including a blueprint for a structured exercise program.
