Evelyne Roets, Oncology Resident at University Hospital Antwerp, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Two years ago at the ESMO – European Society for Medical Oncology Sarcoma and Rare Cancers Congress in Lugano, my promotor Neeltje Steeghs gave a presentation on SDH-deficient GIST and put out a call for collaborators.
This year, I had the opportunity to present our poster including data from 386 patients with SDH-deficient GIST, the largest cohort to date, with contributions from 24 institutions across >12 countries.
We showed important heterogeneity within SDH-deficient GIST patients. Despite limited systemic treatment options, median overall survival in the metastatic setting is 18 years — but as these patients are often young, there is a clear need for better treatments and guidance on when to start therapy.
Honored to receive the ESMO Merit Award for this project. Next step: publication.
This project shows how international collaboration can drive meaningful research in ultra-rare tumors. A big thank you to all collaborators!
I also really enjoyed connecting with my former colleagues from the Netherlands Cancer Institute and to meet other researchers during the Young Oncologists session.
Going home with a lot of motivation and positive energy.
Very thankful to my promoters Neeltje Steeghs, Winette van der Graaf, and Olga Husson for guiding me during my PhD!”
Other articles featuring Evelyne Roets on OncoDaily.
