“I have been working with a very special patient group since 2016: people with myxoid liposarcomas, rare soft tissue tumors. These patients are relatively young – between 30 and 60 years old – which means that they can expect to live several decades after successful treatment. We already knew that this soft tissue tumor subtype responds exceptionally well to radiotherapy – so well, that ten years ago, my promotor Rick Haas started to wonder whether we could achieve the same results with a lower radiation dose. This shorter radiation schedule turns out to be safe, while the risk of side effects is halved. When I first saw the results of our DOREMY trial, I realized that this is amazing news for our patients. That moment was so exhilarating, there is no way to put it into words: the ultimate reward after years of hard work. Of course we raised our glass to that in a small group! I hope to be able to further support our patients as a radiation oncologist in training, through my treatment and my research.”
Jules Lansu will defend his thesis on February 9.