Victer Verbrugge

Bacteria are increasingly recognized as integral components of cancer biology. Modern studies show that they can directly and indirectly contribute to malignant cell growth, and emerging evidence indicates that they also influence therapeutic outcomes. Interactions between the host and its microbiota are known to modulate anti-tumor immunity. Microbes at barrier sites and within the tumor microenvironment affect innate and adaptive immune responses by shaping inflammation, antigen presentation, and T-cell function. These host–microbe interactions can therefore influence the immune system’s capacity to control tumor growth. Immunotherapy enhances this anti-tumor immune activity but inherently depends on the presence and functionality of specific immune cells. Patients whose tumors lack substantial immune infiltration, so-called ‘cold’ tumors, often fail to respond to treatments such as immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). 
By investigating the immune modulatory functions of specific bacteria, my research aims to help identify microbial taxa and their bio-active components that modulate anti-tumor immunity. I will use innovative in vitro screening platforms to identify immunomodulatory microbes, and will validate them in representative transgenic mouse models using germ-free and gnotobiotic mouse technology.
My research may help explain interpatient variability in CRC susceptibility and treatment response and support the development of microbiota-based therapeutic strategies to improve anti-cancer immunity and response to ICB therapy. 
 

In 2025, I graduated in Biochemistry and Biotechnology from Ghent University. During my studies, I also spent time in South Korea and Italy. My master’s thesis at the Humanitas Research hospital in Milan focused on the intratumoral microbiome of soft-tissue sarcoma and its influence on chemotherapy efficacy. Since November 2025, I’ve been further exploring the role of bacteria in cancer in the group of Professor Lars Vereecke. 
 

• Lab address: HMI lab Prof. Lars Vereecke, Technologiepark 71, 9052 Gent-Zwijnaarde
• Lars Vereecke lab
• YouTube Lars Vereecke lab
• Victer Verbrugge
  - is involved in Ghent Gut Inflammation Group (GGIG): a UGent research consortium centered around different aspects of intestinal biology and pathology, including GI cancers
  - can provide Germ-free and gnotobiotic mouse technology
• Victer Verbrugge is interested to receive invitations for presentations or talks