"In theory, cancer treatment could be greatly improved by combining radiotherapy with immunotherapy. After radiotherapy, tumor cells are damaged, allowing the immune system to recognize and eliminate them better. In reality, however, we see that this combination does not work well for all patients.
In mouse models, I started to investigate why. I discovered that the composition of the tumor determines whether there are mainly good or bad T cells in the body. T cells are our main immune cells. Good T cells help clear the tumor, while bad ones can actually hinder this process. In patients whose tumors generate mainly bad T cells, that combination treatment can promote this counteraction, resulting in poor outcomes. My advice is therefore not to simply give all patients the same treatment, but to examine the composition of their tumor first.
I was not immediately on the right track, by the way. Just before Christmas, a few years ago, my original track came to a dead end. I then completely changed course. With success! Recently, I started working as a senior scientist at Genewity, a start-up in Leiden."
Elselien will defend her thesis on April 4. Good luck, Elselien!
This research was financially supported by KWF Dutch Cancer Society, LUMC Leiden and Oncode Institute.
prof. dr. J.G. (Jannie) Borst
I. (Inge) Verbrugge