Posts by author
Anna Wagstaff
Ian Magrath: a visionary who prepared the ground for the global oncology initiatives of today
Ian Magrath, lymphoma specialist and champion of cancer care in the developing world, has died in Brussels, aged 78. An exceptional cancer researcher, physician and teacher, he will be remembered for his pioneering role putting cancer care on the global…
Hansjörg Senn of St Gallen: A practice-changing career
The speed of progress in breast cancer – not just survival, but also quality of life and survivorship – has been the envy of the wider cancer community for many decades. The factors contributing to this relative success are many…
Ending cancer inequalities: European summit showcases new tools to inform policy
Two ambitious data initiatives aimed at tracking a wide range of inequalities that contribute to big differences in the risk of dying from cancer were highlighted in the opening session of the 2022 European Cancer Summit, held in Brussels, November…
Cancer and the immune system: turning insights into treatments
The vision of harnessing our immune systems to fight cancer has been tantalising scientists and doctors for more than a century. The idea had a strong scientific rationale: over millions of years our immune systems have evolved intricate and multi-layered…
Peter Boyle: a high-impact epidemiologist with contagious dreams
Peter Boyle, an outstanding epidemiologist who used the power of statistics to help inform and influence policy at European and global levels, died on July 23 after a long illness, at the age of 71. In an era when Europe…
Begging for imatinib: why do so many patients still lack access to this lifesaver?
Following doctor’s orders doesn’t usually mean making a two-hour round trip to visit your hospital twice a week to beg for any spare medication on the off-chance that someone has had to change to a different drug, or was able…
Long-term health: is it time to update the priorities of cancer research?
“I was told that cancer was a temporary condition ‒ just get through treatment and things will go back to normal. I quickly realised that this is not true.” Gregory Aune was treated for Hodgkin’s disease when he was 17.…
The invisible cure. Should we be talking more about cancer surgery?
The best chance of being cured of cancer is through surgery by expert surgeons with a deep knowledge of oncology. Why then are the public, patients and policy makers so focused on drugs, and does it matter? Mass media have…
On being a woman in oncology: in their own words
Over the past two decades, Cancer World has had the privilege of publishing profiles of many women who have been leading efforts to improve the quality of cancer care. Coming from all corners of Europe, working in all areas of…
Beating the odds in colorectal cancer
Stefan Gijssels beat the odds in colorectal cancer. Diagnosed with a cancer of the colon in 2015, a laparoscopic surgery intended to remove what was thought to be a locally contained tumour revealed something much nastier. The cancer had pierced…