For the latest publications of this PI visit Gertjan Kaspers – Amsterdam UMC
Kaspers, G.J.L. (Gertjan) gjl.kaspers@amsterdamumc.nl
| Research line | Global Pediatric Oncology |
|---|---|
| Department | Pediatric oncology |
| Research Institute(s) | Cancer Center Amsterdam |
| Description | Globally, each year more than 400,000 children are confronted with cancer. While the far majority (>80%) of children lives in so-called low- and middle income countries (LMIC), their chance of cure typically is 20% or less. This is the opposite for children with cancer in high-income countries (HIC): less than 20% of all children reside there with >80% chance of cure. This research program is aimed to help bridging this gap and fits nicely in the WHO Global Initiative on Childhood Cancer. This initiative aims to achieve at least 60% cure for children with cancer worldwide. Important pillars in this program are datamanagement, better care including anticancer treatment and supportive care, capacity building, research and advocacy. |
| Seniors | • Dr. Minke Huibers, postdoc |
| Projects | |
| The Quality of Life Study | Andit Braghmandita investigates the quality of life and the outcome of children with cancer in Indonesia |
| The Supportive Care Study | Alexandra Pangarso studies the late effects and palliative care for children with cancer in Indonesia. |
| The Epidemiology Study | Sari Nur Melani researches a national childhood cancer registry and clinical outcomes in Indonesia. |
| The Malawi Study | George Chagaluka explores improved care for children with cancer in Malawi. |
| The Follow-Up Study | Susan Mageto studies challenges in follow-up children with cancer in Kenya after completion of treatment in Kenya. |
| The Awareness Study | Lillian Osamong investigates possibilities to improve the awareness about childhood cancer among the primary healthcare workers in Kenya. |
| The CICERO Study | Sterre Schoon studies several aspects of childhood cancer in Sub-Sahara Africa, including treatment adherence in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. |
| The Epidemiology and Mapping Study | Ibrahim El Salih investigates the challenges to initiate data registries in several hospitals in Sub-Sahara Africa and Indonesia, as well as differences in the incidence of childhood cancer in different geographical regions. |
| The Early Referral Study | Larissa Klootwijk studies the possibilities to improve the process of referral of children with (suspected) cancer in Kenya. |
| The Late Effects Study | Jesse Lemmen investigates the occurrence of late effects in childhood cancer survivors in Kenya as well as the possibility to develop and implement a follow-up schedule. |
| Research line | Global Pediatric Oncology |
|---|---|
| Department | Pediatric oncology |
| Research Institute(s) | Cancer Center Amsterdam |
| Description | Children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) currently have a cure rate of 80% in high-income countries such as The Netherlands. However, that comes with a cost in terms of significant morbidity during treatment and frequent late effects after completion of therapy. In low- and middle-income countries, survival rates are typically well below 30%. In other words, treatment must further improve all over the world. Important |
| Seniors | |
| Projects | |
| The childhood AML Study | Romy van Weelderen investigated the outcome for children with AML in Kenya and possibilities to improve risk-group adapted treatment for children with AML in countries with ‘unlimited’ resources. |
| The Pro-TEICO Study | Noa Wijnen investigates the safety and efficacy of prophylactic i.v. teicoplanin to avoid invasive bloodstream infections caused by streptococci and other micro-organisms. It is a multi-center, multinational study. |
| The Morbidity and Mortality Study | Emily Schwartz determines quality of life during and after treatment for acute leukemias, and for AML specifically also toxicity of treatment including treatment-induced mortality. |
| The CHIP-AML Study | Merlijn van Hamel contributes to this multicenter, multinational clinical phase II/III trial aiming to improve outcome in children with newly diagnosed, initial AML. Improvements in terms of higher event-free survival, but also better quality-of-life and less unnecessary morbidity |
Last edited: 05-03-2026