Videos

Why do cancer patients relapse despite receiving treatment? This is often due to dormant cancer cells. These cells lie dormant in the body and manage to escape treatment, for example, chemotherapy. Can substances from camel and llama blood provide a breakthrough?

Did you know that cancer cells are not so different from our healthy cells? This makes it difficult for T-cells, important immune cells in our body, to recognise and fight cancer cells. Cancer researcher Heleen Hanssens (VUB-FWO) wants to give T-cells a helping hand by equipping them with more sensitive receptors, or antennae, that are pre-programmed to unmask cancer cells. In the lab, she is looking for the perfect form for these CAR antennae, so that they become more stable and better at detecting cancer cells. 

Radiation can save the lives of people with head and neck cancer. Unfortunately, many patients develop swallowing disorders as a result of the treatment, which makes it impossible for them to eat solid food. Leen Van den Steen (UAntwerpen - UZA) wants to help them. How? With tongue strength training.

"Each person is unique. So why do we still treat every woman with ovarian cancer the same way?" Liselore Loverix (KU Leuven - FWO) examines patient by patient and looks for errors in the DNA of their tumour cells. In this way, before treatment starts, she identifies which patient would benefit from a new, targeted therapy based on cancer drugs.

Thanks to new radiotherapy techniques, more and more patients with head and neck cancer are surviving. But for 70% of them, this radiation causes chronic swallowing problems, making it difficult to eat and drink. Hanne Massonet hopes to help them enjoy food and drink again by training their tongue, mouth, and throat muscles.

Have you ever tried to get the last cookie from the bottom of the jar but couldn't quite reach it? Now, what if that cookie can potentially help cure cancer? Wiktoria Wojtaczka (KU Leuven) is investigating terbium, a chemical element that can be turned into a drug for cancer. But the problem she faces in her research is pretty similar to that of the cookie stuck in the jar

Did you know that colon cancer is the third most deadly cancer worldwide? Unfortunately, while immunotherapy is quite effective in the treatment of many cancers, such as skin cancer, it only works in 5% of colon cancer patients. Sara Verbandt (KU Leuven) explains how she wants to make immunotherapy stand up against colon cancer.

Immunotherapy is a very promising therapy for cancer, but only 15 to 30% of the patients respond to this kind of therapy. Giving immunotherapy to patients without knowing whether they will respond is expensive and can even harm them. That's why Madhavi Andhari is looking for markers to tell apart responders from non-responders.

As if developing a cancer drug is not difficult enough, you still have to successfully get that medicine to the tumor. Tim Bomberna (Ghent University) explains how computer simulations show us the way.

Imagine having to visit the toilet 30 times a day for 'number two'. That's not possible, right? Unfortunately, it's the reality for a lot of patients with rectal cancer who've had rectal surgery. Anne Asnong tries to help these people so that they no longer have to spend their life 'chained' to the toilet seat. 🚽

Quitting smoking is quite a challenge. In her PhD, Karolien Adriaens (KU Leuven) shows that the e-cigarette is an effective tool to help smokers eventually get rid of their addiction.

Chemotherapy affects the brains of patients. It can lead to cognitive complaints, stress, and fatigue. Michelle Melis achieves promising results with mindfulness in patients with breast cancer.