Luna De Sutter

MD (surgical oncology: breast cancer, skin cancer, sarcoma); PhD (Laboratory of Experimental Oncology, soft tissue sarcoma, patient-derived xenograft models)

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

Thank you for the great opportunities! @schoffski @AgaWozniak1 @merckgroup #IDRx #IDRX42 #CTOS2023 #CTOSTweeTOS

[Patrick Schöffski @schoffski]

Luna prepared the clinical development of IDRx-42 with her essential patient-derived xenograft work in our lab, and we are now translating her responses in mice into an impressive waterfall plot in pretreated GIST patients. Cool! De Sutter et al. Clin Cancer Res 2023;29(15):2859

[Jeffrey Farma @JeffreyFarma]

#Melanoma Surgeons! Please consider participating in this short IRB approved anonymous survey on sentinel lymph node biopsy @FoxChaseCancer
Share your approach
https://t.co/mdz4Gun5s5
@SocSurgOnc @AmColSurgCancer @MelanomaReAlli @CureMelanoma @AcademicSurgery @UnivSurg

[Roberto Pestana, MD, PhD @PestanaRC]

Continuing to prepare for #ASCO2026: VEBrant presents a novel, meaningful targeted therapy signal in clear cell sarcoma — and it arrives for a disease that has had no established standard of care, in patients with a median age of 29.

Clear cell sarcoma (CCS) is an ultra-rare soft tissue sarcoma driven by EWSR1-ATF1(90%)/CREB1(10%) fusions. It is largely chemotherapy-resistant tumor and typically affects young adults in their 20s and 30s. No systemic therapy has ever demonstrated reliable, meaningful efficacy. The MET pathway is frequently activated through overexpression, making it a biologically rational target. However, the prior proof-of-concept data with crizotinib, a type Ia MET inhibitor, was sobering: DCR 69.2%, ORR 3.8%.

Vebreltinib is a highly selective type Ib MET inhibitor with an established efficacy signal in MET-altered solid tumors, including NSCLC with MET amplification or overexpression. The type Ib profile confers greater selectivity and a distinct binding mode compared to crizotinib.

VEBrant enrolled 23 patients (NCT07153887), 17 evaluable at data cutoff. Median age 29 years; 95.7% had prior systemic therapy. ORR: 41.2% (7 partial responses). DCR: 70.6%. Median PFS 4.14 months; 6-month PFS rate 42.8%. Median OS not reached. In a tumor where objective responses are almost never observed, that magnitude of signal is striking.

Grade 3-4 TRAEs occurred in 21.7%, driven predominantly by rash. Four patients discontinued within 2 weeks due to grade 4 rash — all on concurrent immunotherapy. The protocol permitted continuation of prior PD1/PDL1 therapy, and this combination appears to carry a meaningful dermatologic toxicity risk.

The next steps are durability confirmation, MET-based patient selection, resolution of the IO combination toxicity question, and a path toward a randomized trial.

— Roberto Pestana, MD | Sarcoma Medical Oncology

[OncoDaily @oncodaily]

Why Physical Activity Should Be a Standard Prescription in Oncology - Muna Al-Khaifi (@munasaid44)

https://t.co/B3NQ83WL7D

#OncoDaily #Oncology #Cancer #Health #Medicine #MedX #MedTwitter

[Paolo Tarantino @PTarantinoMD]

40 years ago, a young physician submitted a paper reporting on the alteration of a gene called HER2/neu to Science. He didn’t know that it was the beginning of one of the most remarkable scientific stories of the human kind, which would eventually impact the lives of COUNTLESS patients with cancer — first via mABs, then through ADCs, bsAbs and beyond.

Unforgettable Keynote presentation by Dennis Slamon at #MBCC26.

[FORTRESS @FORTRESSMEETING]

Forum for Translational Research in Sarcomas (FORTRESS) returning to its birthplace Leuven (BE) this week! We are looking forward to welcoming 140 invited guests in our spectacular medieval environment, the Infirmerie, a care facility dating back almost 800 years

[Flavia Paternostro @FlaviaPater]

Leuven hosted, we debated…The rest is confidential! Fortress 2026 – Mystery Edition ⁦@FORTRESSMEETING⁩ ⁦@schoffski⁩ ⁦@AgaWozniak1⁩

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

Want to work on a fantastic project in a great lab? 👇🏻

[Jonas Demeulemeester @zeunas]

🧬 We're hiring a postdoc!

Come chart somatic evolution with us using cutting-edge long-read & single-cell tech 🔬

Computational bio background + love for complex cancer genomics = perfect fit

📍 Leuven, Belgium 📧 https://t.co/Yeoz7d2j54

#postdoc #genomics #hiring

[Dr Rishabh Jain @DrRishabhOnco]

🚴‍♂️ If EXERCISE were a cancer drug, every oncologist would be fighting to prescribe it.

But it’s not a pill - and that’s the real problem.

🔥 CHALLENGE Trial (Stage II–III Colon Cancer)

Patients who did supervised aerobic exercise for 3 years after chemo had:
✨ 28% better DFS
✨ 37% better OS
🛡️ Fewer distant mets
🧬 Fewer second primaries

This isn’t “feel better.”
This is live longer.

🤔 So why don’t we treat exercise like actual cancer therapy?

Because the system isn’t built for it:

🏥 Need proper exercise-oncology programs
👩‍⚕️ Need trained oncology-specific exercise professionals
📋 Need triage tools (EXCEEDS) to match patients → right level
💬 Need behavioral support (pamphlets ≠ adherence)
💵 Need CMS/private payer reimbursement
📊 Need ROI data to push policy change

⸻

📣 The JCO commentary is basically shouting:
“We know it works - now build the infrastructure!”

The path is clear:
Train → Triage → Supervise → Support → Reimburse → Scale.

Exercise oncology shouldn’t take 20 years to become standard care. Patients need it now.

📖 Full paper in comment ⬇️
#OncoTwitter #MedTwitter #ColorectalCancer #exercise @OncoAlert @myesmo @esmo_open @asco

[Liposarcoma Support Network @liposarcoma_sn]

Brigimadlin shrank this patient’s tumors when nothing else worked. @Boehringer is taking this opportunity away from patients. Sign the petition: https://t.co/G60ALlqelA #SaveBrigimadlin #PatientVoices #Liposarcoma #DDLPS

[Samuel Hume @DrSamuelBHume]

Alcohol shrinks the brain

This association is detectable in people who only drink one or two units per day, and more drinks means more atrophy:

[Patrick Schöffski @schoffski]

Just updated our in vivo platform of patient-derived xenografts of gastrointestinal stromal tumors. All models fully characterized, available for collaborative research and validated in multiple studies, some translating into clinical trials. Read doi: 10.1242/dmm.052225

[Herbert Loong, MBBS, FASCO @herbloong]

Feeling #postCTOSFOMO? 😀 Re-live the excitement of @ctosociety #CTOS2024 and make sure you register for this important summary of #GIST related abstracts presented in San Diego! #sarcoma @Liferaftgroup

[European Cancer Organisation @EuropeanCancer]

📢 It's here!
We just unveiled an eye-opening report: 'UNDER PRESSURE'.
It includes survey results from over 700 #Cancer professionals.

🪫 52% of them say they're exhausted by their workload
📋 55% think 'bureaucracy' is making their job overwhelming

This data, alongside personal stories & policy recommendations will help us address the #CancerWorkforce crisis.

Many thanks to the ECO Workforce Co-Chairs for their key contributions: Mirjam Crul, Wendy Oldenmenger & @WimCeelen

Read the full publication!➡️ https://t.co/kWjSK4WkOr

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

After the inspiring @ctosociety conference, @DouchyT and I spent some very interesting days at @UCSDCancer, visiting @JasonSicklick and his wonderful team. Thank you so much for the great time we had in San Diego!

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

Thank you @ctosociety for inspiring us yet again with interesting talks, debates and posters. It is always great to connect with sarcoma dedicated people, this time while enjoying the beautiful San Diego.
#CTOS2024 #CTOSTweeTOS

[Pawel Sobczuk @pawel_sobczuk]

IDRX-42 a novel KIT TKI (targeting KIT ex 9, 11, 13 and 17 mut.) shows promising activity in phase I STRATEGIST 1 trial in pts with 2+ line of therapy
🔸ORR 29%, 53% in 2nd line
👏great presentation by Suzanne George @DanaFarber
#CTOS2024 @ctosociety #CTOSTweeTOS

[Priya Chudasama @priyachudasama5]

It starts! #CTOS2024 is officially underway with a helluva welcome address by @JasonSicklick and President Damon Reed, also featuring a special guest! Wishing all the #topgunsofsarcoma a great meeting!
@ctosociety

[Patrick Schöffski @schoffski]

The IDRX-42 GIST story: yet another example of reverse translation of our in vivo work with patient-derived mouse xenografts in the Lab of Experimental Oncology at KU Leuven providing a rationale for a clinical application. See De Sutter et al DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-22-3822

[Pawel Sobczuk @pawel_sobczuk]

Interesting data for IDRX-42, new KIT inhibitor, in #GIST, just presented at #ASCO24 by Patrick Schöffski
🚨phase I, multiple dose levels, heterogenous population
but...
📈high rate of responses across different dose levels, especially in 2nd line

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

Thank you for sharing this moment with me! @JasonSicklick @LoreDeCock8 @Danielgorgels @Ally_CCWang @LisaKinget @pavlo_lutsik and many others. Greatly appreciated!

[Luna De Sutter @LN_DS]

Yesterday I defended my doctoral thesis on the biology and drug sensitivity of selected mesenchymal malignancies. I am very grateful @schoffski, @AgaWozniak1 and Daphne Hompes for these past four years and I am looking forward to the next adventures on my path…