dr. Sofie Van Dorpe (MD, PhD)

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small, membrane-enclosed particles released by both eukaryotic and bacterial cells. In cancer, tumor-derived EVs reflect the molecular characteristics of the tumor and circulate stably in body fluids such as blood. This makes them promising biomarkers for early detection, prognosis, and therapy response through non-invasive liquid biopsies. However, clinical implementation is hindered by the substantial heterogeneity of EVs, the complexity of body fluids, and methodological variability in EV analysis. Improving reproducibility and ensuring systematic, transparent reporting of technical variables are therefore crucial. 
This research aims to advance the standardization of EV analysis in cancer biomarker research. Ongoing studies focus on the discovery of EV-associated biomarkers in breast cancer.
 

Sofie Van Dorpe graduated in 2018 as Master of Medicine, magna cum laude, at Ghent University. After obtaining her degree as a medical doctor (MD), she initiated her training in Gynaecology-Obstetrics at Ghent University Hospital and started as doctoral fellow at the Laboratory for Experimental Cancer Research (LECR) at Ghent University.
 

• Lab address: 
  Laboratory of Experimental Cancer Research, 
  Department of Human Structure and Repair, 
  Campus UZ Gent, Corneel Heymanslaan 10, The Core, ingang 37, 9000 Gent, Belgium 
• Laboratory of Experimental Cancer Research
• Gynaecology, UZ Gent