Videos

Guillermo
Solis Fernandez
KU Leuven

Finding the tools cancer uses to spread through the body

Many types of cancer are still being diagnosed too late. The disease has then often already spread, making it difficult to treat the patients. Can we improve early diagnostics in cancer? The answer is hidden in the proteins of the cell, as Guillermo Solis Fernandez explains. 
Marlies
Vanden Bempt
KU Leuven
VIB

Immunotherapy: why screening patients is key

Immunotherapy is increasingly being used in the fight against cancer. But this therapy does not work for all patients. You would think that if it doesn't work, it doesn't it hurt. Unfortunately, it does! Marlies Vanden Bempt (VIB - KU Leuven) explains why.
Matteo
Rossi
FWO
KU Leuven
VIB

Finding the weak spot of breast cancer cells

Despite recent advances in breast cancer treatment, too many women still die once this cancer has spread throughout their body. That's why Matteo Rossi is looking to find weaknesses of breast cancer cells, in order to defeat them.
Jolien
Robijns
UHasselt

Can light therapy prevent burns?

Many cancer patients undergo radiotherapy as a treatment. Unfortunately, due to this treatment they often suffer from painful burns. Jolien Robijns (Hasselt University International) tries to prevent these burns. How? By using laser light.
Elien
Derveaux
UHasselt

How lung cancer leaves useful traces in the blood

Every year about 8,000 people in Belgium develop lung cancer. These people may get the same diagnosis, but their bodies react differently. Elien Derveaux (Universiteit Hasselt) examines whether, on the basis of these differences, we can predict which treatment is most suitable for the patient.
Elien
De Thaye
UGent

Monitoring cancer in the blood

Waiting for results after a medical examination often causes stress and uncertainty, especially in cancer patients. That is why Elien De Thaye is working on a method to determine the effect of a chemo treatment on people with peritoneal cancer more quickly on the basis of a so-called marker in the blood.
Kristel
Paque
UGent
VUB

Are all those pills really needed as the end approaches?

Up to 91 pills a week. That's how many medicines people take at the end of their lives. Kristel Paque is investigating whether all these pills are really necessary.
Ruben
Van Paemel
FWO
UGent

Liquid biopsies in cancer diagnosis

Did you know that 1 in 100 people who develop cancer are under 18 years of age? In order to diagnose cancer, a surgical biopsy is often required. But Ruben Van Paemel and his colleagues want to change this. They want to detect cancer in children by taking a simple blood sample.
Celine
Everaert
FWO
UGent

Using computing power to fight cancer

Did you know that cancer researchers draw inspiration from applications such as Amazon, Facebook and even Tinder? Armed with a supercomputer, Celine Everaert, like these applications, processes large amounts of data. Not to sell books or to help people get on a date, but to offer cancer patients personalised treatments.
Ovia Margaret
Thirukkumaran
FWO
KU Leuven

HER2 breast cancer: comprehend to conquer it!

Did you know that breast cancer is the second most common cancer for women, affecting 1.7 million women worldwide? In her research Ovia Margaret Thirukkumaran is trying to decipher how cancer cells communicate and develop resistance against drugs in so called HER 2 breast cancer, a very aggressive form of breast cancer.
Jan-Pieter
Ploem
UHasselt

Flatworms help track down carcinogens!

Every year, many mice are sacrificed for science. These animals are used, among other things, to test whether certain substances are carcinogenic. Jan-Pieter Ploem is working on a new test method that uses flatworms, that will hopefully help save a lot of mice.
Nena
Testelmans
KU Leuven
VIB

Organ transplants: life-saving, yet sometimes lethal

While an organ transplant will often save the life of a patient, it also leads to a higher risk of developing cancer. Nena Testelmans (KU Leuven) is determined to help unravel why transplants might induce cancer in patients.