B. De Moerloose MD, PhD

The strategic plan for paediatric cancer treatment and clinical research development in Belgium

Childhood cancer can be cured in a good proportion of patients, but outcome rates are still unsatisfactory for specific cancer types and for resistant or relapsed disease. Collaborative clinical research is required for further outcome improvement as well as easier access for children to innovative treatments. Moreover, clinical care standards and clinical research infrastructure in Belgium should be optimised and structurally financed to reach the level proposed by international professional and scientific organisations. In this strategic plan, obstacles are analysed, and solutions for improved childhood cancer care and clinical research in Belgium are proposed.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2019;13(1):21–26)

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The ION-Ghent guidelines for the management of immune related adverse events (irAE’s)

SUMMARY

Checkpoint inhibitors targeting CTLA4, PD1 and PD-L1 have become a part of the daily clinical practice in the management of stage IV melanoma, renal cell carcinoma (RCC), non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and Hodgkin-lymphoma patients. While these agents can elicit strong anti-tumour immune responses, they can also generate immune related adverse events, which can become life threatening if not detected and managed promptly. At the University Hospital Ghent, we created a working group of organ specialists with specific experience in dealing with immune related adverse events. This initiative is part of ION (Immuno-Oncology-Network) Ghent. In this paper we would like to share our institutional guidelines for the clinical care of patients treated with checkpoint-inhibitors with the Belgian Oncology Community.

(BELG J MED ONCOL 2017;11(6):265–276)

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