Dr. Jaume Capdevila specializes in the treatment of tumors of the digestive tract (esophagogastric, colorectal, pancreatic, biliary tract, liver, small intestine, peritoneum, and anal canal) as well as endocrine tumors (thyroid, gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, paragangliomas, pheochromocytomas, adrenal carcinoma, and other neuroendocrine neoplasms).

Since 2006, he has been part of the Medical Oncology Service (Gastrointestinal and Endocrine Cancer Unit) at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, and he currently combines this with his clinical activity at Teknon Oncology Institute.

Academic Background

Degree in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Lleida (2001)
Fellowship in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Lleida
Residency in Medical Oncology at Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau (2006)
Research fellowship in the Endocrine Oncology Department at Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden (2008)

Scientific and Professional Activity

Dr. Capdevila is actively involved in multiple oncology research projects and is a member of numerous national and international scientific societies, including:

• European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)
• European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)
• European Neuroendocrine Tumor Society (ENETS) – advisory board member
  American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
• Grupo Español Multidisciplinar en Cáncer Digestivo (GEMCAD)
• Grupo Español de Tumores Digestivos (TTD)
• Sociedad Española de Oncología Médica (SEOM)

He also serves as Secretary and Treasurer of the Spanish Group of Neuroendocrine Tumors (GETNE), and is co-founder and Treasurer of the Spanish Group of Orphan and Rare Tumors (GETHI).

Publications

He has authored over 50 scientific articles in high-impact medical journals such as:

• The New England Journal of Medicine
• Journal of Clinical Oncology
• Annals of Oncology
• European Journal of Cancer
• British Journal of Cancer
• Clinical Cancer Research
• Cancer Discovery, among others.

He has also contributed as editor and co-author to various books and chapters in the field of Medical Oncology.

Current research lines include the optimization of chemotherapy in early-stage disease, evaluation of new agents and therapies, research into novel pharmacogenomic approaches, the integration of immunotherapeutic approaches in the treatment of lung cancer patients, and the elucidation of potential mechanisms of resistance to tyrosine-kinase inhibitors.

Enriqueta Felip is the Head of the Thoracic and Head and Neck Cancer Unit within the Oncology Department of Vall d’Hebron Hospital, Barcelona, Spain

FORMATION

• Medical degree from the UAB, where she also completed her PhD studies in medical oncology.

TRACK

• Current member of the Spanish Lung Cancer Group (SLCG) and the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM).
• Member of the scientific committee of the SLCG.
• SEOM Vice-President for the following years 2019-2021.
• Member of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).
• Member of the Board of Directors of IASLC (2017-2021).
• Co-chair of the 20th WCLC Congress that took place last September 2019 in Barcelona.
• Dr. Felip receives the 1st ESMO Women for Oncology Award in 2015.
• President of the Oncology Comission at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital.
• Member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Parc Taulí Sabadell Hospital.

PUBLICATIONS

Author of many peer-reviewed articles and book chapters relating to the field of thoracic malignancies.

TEACHING

• Associate Professor at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) from 2010 to May 2019.
• Professor of Medicine at the Universitat de Vic (UVicc-UCC). She is involved in the training of medical students, residents and particularly in mentoring fellows.

TRAINING:

• Bachelor of Medicine from the Universitat de Barcelona.

• PhD from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.

• Master in Molecular Oncology at Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncológicas (CNIO) 

• PostDoctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina, USA.

AREAS OF INTEREST

• Diagnostics and treatment of breast cancer and other solid tumors.

• Subtypes of intrinsic breast cancer (Luminal A, Luminal B, HER2-enriched and basal-like)

• Head of the Translational Genomics Lab at IDIBAPS

RESEARCH

• The research led by Dr. Prat is based on using genomic data to guide the design of clinical trials and biomarker development in order to identify more optimal treatments for patients with cancer.

• Specifically, its main strategic lines are: 

• • Assist in implementing and developing genomic platforms applicable in daily clinical practice. 

• • Participate in prospective and retrospective studies where scientist’s genomics of tumors analyzed. 

• • Validation of predictive genomic biomarkers and / or forecasts in clinical trials. 

• • Evaluate gene expression data as a tool to identify new mechanisms of sensitivity / drug resistance and / or new therapeutic targets. 

• Author of more than 100 peer-reviewed publications.

• Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from the Universidad de Barcelona
• Doctor of Medicine and Surgery from the Universidad de Barcelona
• Medical Oncology and Internal Medicine specialist

AREAS OF INTEREST

• Medical treatment of breast, lung, colorectal, stomach, urological and head and neck cancer.
• Electrochemotherapy of solid tumors resistant to other treatments.

RESEARCH

• Electrochemotherapy in solid tumors and malignant melanoma: When all the standard treatments have failed in patients with spreading surface tumors, such as breast, head and neck cancer or melanoma, it may be effective to administer chemotherapy while applying electrical pulses to the tumor with the patient under general anesthetic in the operating room. Treatment takes half an hour, is well-tolerated and achieves a tumor response rate of more than 70%.
• New treatments in head and neck cancer: The association of low doses of chemotherapy with new anti-target drugs achieves a response in treatment-resistant tumors.
• Adjuvant chemotherapy in stomach cancer: After radical surgery, the administration of several doses of specific chemotherapy is well tolerated and increases the chances of a permanent cure by preventing local relapses and distant metastases.

He is a medical doctor and holds a PhD from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain. He is currently Head of Department of Medical Oncology of the Vall d’Hebrón University Hospital in Barcelona and Director of the Vall d’Hebrón Institute of Oncology.

In addition to his passion for having a close relationship with his patients, Dr. Josep Tabernero has a very high scientific profile. He has been very involved in the investigation of many medicines for colorectal cancer, such as Aflibercept, Regorafenib Ramucirumab and TAS 102. Among these medicines, we highlight his contribution to the development of Cetuximab and Panitunumab, which have provided a great opportunity to KRAS wild type patients (40% -50% of colorectal patients).

He is heavily involved in transnational research and phase I pharmacodynamic studies with targeted molecular therapies. He is especially devoted to phase I and II studies with pharmacodynamic parameters with new agents, targeting membrane receptors, such as the EGFR and IGF-1R family, the PI3K and ERK signalling pathways, as well as cytoplasmic and intranuclear effectors such as Mdm2 / P53 and aurora kinase. Based on the idea that each tumour has an independent genetic identity, the group led by Dr. Tabernero participates in the development of molecular therapies targeted to specific oncoproteins, with the purpose of developing personalised therapies (for example, against EGFR, HER2, BRAF, MEK, PI3K, Akt, mTOR or IGF1-R among others) for patients that show genetic lesions or deregulation of the pathway. One of the main objectives of the group is to identify new predictive markers of response to various treatments and also to identify primary (de novo) and secondary resistance markers.

At a preclinical level, the target group is developing new models of xenografts with tumours from patient explants (“xenopatients”) in mice to mimic the patient’s disease and to study tumour development in optimised research models. He also leads a programme that studies circulating biomarkers (detection and genotyping of circulating free DNA).

He is a member of the Executive Board of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) and was Treasurer and President of the Audit Committee until 2015. He has been elected president of the ESMO 2018-2019 and is currently elected President. He is a member of the ESMO Clinical Benefits Scale Magnitude Working Group, the ESMO Public Policies Steering Committee and the ESMO Audit Committee.

He is also a member of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), and participates in its International Affairs Committee. He is actively involved in different editorial boards such as the Journal of Clinical Oncology, clinical cancer research, cancer discovery, clinical colorectal cancer and ESMO Open.

He is co-author of approximately 250 peer-reviewed documents. He has also been a member of the educational and scientific committees of the meetings of the ESMO, ECCO, ASCO, AACR, AACR / NCI / EORTC, Gastrointestinal ASCO and WCGIC.

• Dra. Teresa Macarulla is a prominent member of the group of gastrointestinal tumours led by Dr. Josep Tabernero, President of the European Society of Medical Oncology, ESMO, 2018-2019, who serves as president-elect in 2016.

• In the healthcare area, she is characterised by her closeness and ability to empathise with patients. Within the team of gastrointestinal tumours, she is responsible for patients with biliopancreatic tumours.

• As an investigator, she has participated in numerous studies that have led to the development of new molecules in colon cancer. For example, the PRIME study allowed the approval of panitumumab (anti-EGFR) in the first line of treatment of colon cancer, the VELOUR study allowed the approval of aflibercept in combination with chemotherapy in the second-line treatment of colon cancer.

• Furthermore, Dra. Teresa Macarulla is responsible for the development of new molecules in biliopancreatic cancer, having participated as investigator in the MPACT study, which allowed the approval of gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel in pancreatic cancer, and in the NAPOLI study that has proven the power of a new medicine in pancreatic cancer after progression to gemcitabine, nal-IRI in combination with 5-fluorouracil.

• Dra. Macarulla is involved as principal investigator in numerous clinical studies that may allow the approval of new medicines in this area in the coming years. As investigator, she leads personalised medicine studies, both in pancreatic cancer and in tumours of the bile duct, performing molecular studies that allow selecting for each patient, that treatment with greater chances of success.

• Dra. Macarulla has 49 publications in prestigious journals such as Lancet, Annals of Oncology, Clinical Cancer Research, etc.

• Dra. Macarulla is an active member of the Spanish, European and American oncology society (SEOM, ESMO and ASCO).

• Dra. Teresa Macarulla was born in Barcelona in 1974, and she graduated in Medicine and Surgery at the Autonomous University of Barcelona in 1998. She carried out her specialisation in the Medical Oncology Department of the Sant Pau University Hospital in Barcelona (2000-2004). At present, and since 2004, she has been attached to the Medical Oncology Department of the Vall d’Hebrón University Hospital and the Baselga Oncology Institute in Barcelona, as part of the digestive tumour team. She has completed a research stage at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre in New York, in the area of digestive tumours.