How to easily participate in cancer research?
The Institut Bordet Tumour Bank or Tumour Biobank is a collection of samples of human body material (tumour tissue residue, blood samples) and of associated data preserved in optimum conditions for their future use in research. It constitutes a crucial link between diagnosis and fundamental, translational and clinical research. Its activity is subject to strict legislation.
The development of personalised medicine and of immunotherapy in oncology requires the exploration of new biomarkers identifiable in tumour tissue, but also in blood. The role of the Tumour Bank is to collect and supply to scientific research laboratories very high quality, diversified, biological samples in sufficient quantity, accompanied by complete clinical data to enable them to carry out their research. The objective is to understand how tumour ‘machinery’ operates and the strategy that allows it to escape the vigilance and immune defences of its host.
The Tumour Bank forms part of the Anatomical Pathology Department, enabling full and accurate analysis of tumours by pathologists prior to their preservation. It also forms an integral part of other Belgian biobanks – the Cancer Register Virtual Catalogue, BWB (Wallonia-Brussels BioBank) and of 2 European biobanks: the BBMRI and ESBB. Contact via these networks between different Belgian and international research teams facilitates the establishment of links and skill sharing.
The Institut Bordet Tumour Bank has been ISO90001 certified since 2012 – a guarantee of quality. The robust system put in place for the quality control of our samples enables us to support numerous research projects every year. This is evidenced in the quality of the scientific publications that result from these.
- Created: 2010
- More than 16,000 frozen tissue samples available
- Samples provided by more than 10,000 patients
- More than 65 projects using the samples collected
- Digital Pathology
Digital pathology is becoming increasingly important in current practice, particularly in research. The Association Jules Bordet has funded part of our Digital Pathology platform. The process of digitising microscopy slides makes it possible to use software to process images. As a result, precise analysis of different cell populations – solid tumour inflammatory infiltrates, for example – can be carried out. These studies will be transposed to a clinical setting, notably to assess whether or not a particular immunotherapy treatment might be beneficial to patients. In addition, hot-spots (concentrations of cell markers) are identified and analysed. - Laser Microdissection
Laser microdissection or Laser Capture/Cutting Microdissection (LCM) is a technology that allows the isolation, under morphological control, of cells of interest from tissue sections using a laser beam. This project, supported by the Association Jules Bordet, will make it possible to study tumour heterogeneity at single-cell-type level.
Research
The Tumour Bank not only supplies biological material, it also develops its own scientific projects.
Project 1
Recognition of neutrophils and measurements of the protein expression of candidates able to affect their functions in non-small-cell lung cancer
- Project leader : Etienne Meylan, ULB
- Collaborations : Ligia Craciun, Pieter Demetter
Project 2
Unravelling the role of epitranscriptomics in breast cancer
- Project leaders : Francois Kuks, Karen Willard-Gallo, Soizic Garaud, Laboratory of Cancer Epigenetics (ULB) – Molecular Immunology Laboratory (IJB)
- Collaborations : Denis Larsimont, Ligia Craciun
Project 3
Robustness of next generation sequencing on older FFPE blocks
- Project leaders : Ligia Craciun, Denis Larsimont, IJB
- Collaborations : Benheraoua Fatima, Spinette Alex
Project 4
Characterisation of the microbiota in colorectal metastases: nature and impact on the tumour immune microenvironment, progression of the disease and response to treatment.
- Project leaders : Van Den Eynde Marc, Philippe Stevens, UCL
- Collaborations : Ligia Craciun, Pieter Demetter
Project 5
HPV infection in oesophagial adenocarcinoma
- Project leaders : Michael Herfs, GIGA-Cancer, University of Liege
- Collaborations : Pieter Demetter, Ligia Craciun
Project 6
Analysis of astrocyte subtypes, microglia and macrophages in brain metastases
- Project leaders : Awada Ahmad, Kindt Nadège, IJB
- Collaborations : Ligia Craciun, Pieter Demetter
Project 7
MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF INTRATUMOR HETEROGENEITY OF DIFFERENT BREAST CANCER SUBTYPES AND THEIR MICROENVIRONMENT USING MULTIOMIC PLATFORMS
- Project leaders : Christos Sotiriou, IJB
- Collaborations : Ligia Craciun, Denis Larsimont
Project 8
HIGH-THROUGHPUT TRUTHING OF MICROSCOPE SLIDES TO VALIDATE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ALGORITHMS ANALYZING DIGITAL SCANS OF SAME SLIDES
- Project leaders : Ligia Craciun, Denis Larsimont, IJB
- Collaborations : Brandon Galass, FDA, Roberto Salgado
Project 9
INVESTIGATING THE RELEVANCE OF TROP2 AS A POTENTIAL MARKER OF EPITHELIAL REGENERATION IN HUMAN INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASES
- Project leader : M. Isabelle Garcia, IRIBHM, ULB Erasme
- Collaborations : Pieter Demetter, Ligia Craciun
Project 10
CYTOTOXICITY MECHANISMS LINKED TO PDE3A IN GASTROINTESTINAL STROMAL TUMOURS: IN VIVO AND IN VITRO PRECLINICAL STUDIES
- Project leader : Jean-Marie Vanderwinden, IRIBHM, ULB Erasme
- Collaborations : Pieter Demetter, Ligia Craciun
Project 11
CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE IMMUNE ENVIRONMENT OF PANCREATIC CANCERS IN TREATMENT-NAÏVE PATIENTS AND THOSE HAVING RECEIVED DIFFERENT TYPES OF NEOADJUVANT THERAPY
- Project leader : Christelle Bouchart , IJB
- Collaborations : Laurine Verset, Ligia Craciun
Project 12
ACTIVATING PHOSPHORYLATION OF CDK4: USE TO PREDICT TUMOUR RESPONSIVENESS TO CDK4 INHIBITORY DRUGS IN ORDER TO EXTEND THESE DRUGS TO CANCERS LACKING EFFICIENT THERAPIES
- Project leaders : Pierre Roger, Carine Maenhaut, Thierry Berghmans, Jean-Luc Van Laethem, ULB Erasme
- Collaborations : Ligia Craciun, Denis Larsimont
Team
Head of the Anatomical Pathology Department, Human Body Material Manager
Pr D. Larsimont
Tumour Bank Coordinator
Dr Sc L. Craciun
Technologist
A. Spinette
Scientific publications
Tumor biology reflected by histological growth pattern is more important than surgical margin for the prognosis of patients undergoing resection of colorectal liver metastases.
Authors : Bohlok A, Inchiostro L, Lucidi V, Vankerckhove S, Hendlisz A, Van Laethem JL, Craciun L, Demetter P, Larsimont D, Dirix L, Vermeulen P, Donckier V
Year : 2023
Journal : Eur J Surg Oncol
Volume : 49
Pages : 217-224
Thyroid cancer under the scope of emerging technologies.
Authors : Tarabichi M, Demetter P, Craciun L, Maenhaut C, Detours V
Year : 2022
Journal : Mol Cell Endocrinol
Volume : 541
Pages : 111491
The Use of Pan-Tropomyosin Receptor Kinase Immunohistochemistry as a Screening Tool for the Detection of Neurotrophic Tropomyosin-Related Kinase Fusions: Real-World Data from a National Multicentric Retrospective Study.
Authors : Van Bockstal MR, Beniuga G, Craciun L, Creytens D, Dedeurwaerdere F, Delvenne P, Demetter P, De Wiest B, Dewinne K, Habran L, Pauwels P, Theate I, Vander Borght S, Van Der Steen K, Weynand B
Year : 2022
Journal : Pathobiology
Pages : 1-14
Ferroptosis Induction and YAP Inhibition as New Therapeutic Targets in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GISTs).
Authors : Delvaux M, Hagué P, Craciun L, Wozniak A, Demetter P, Schöffski P, Erneux C, Vanderwinden JM
Year : 2022
Journal : Cancers (Basel)
Volume : 14
Neo-CheckRay: radiation therapy and adenosine pathway blockade to increase benefit of immuno-chemotherapy in early stage luminal B breast cancer, a randomized phase II trial.
Authors : De Caluwe A, Buisseret L, Poortmans P, Van Gestel D, Salgado R, Sotiriou C, Larsimont D, Paesmans M, Craciun L, Drisis S, Vandekerckhove C, Reyal F, Veys I, Eiger D, Piccart-Gebhart M, Romano E, Ignatiadis M
Year : 2021
Journal : BMC Cancer
Volume : 21
Pages : 899