项目介绍

2024年12月16日

Prof. Dr. Sarah Thomis is head of the Expert Centre for Lymphedema (UZ Leuven) and assistant Professor in the research group of Vascular Surgery (department of Cardiovascular Sciences, KU Leuven). At the Expert Centre, around 1180 patients with lymphedema are seen every year. Since 2017 the Expert Centre for Lymphedema is recognized as ‘specialized center for the conservative multidisciplinary treatment of lymphedema’ by the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (NIHDI). The Expert Centre for Lymphedema guarantees high-quality standard of care according to international guidelines as well as optimal patient recruitment for the current study.

The research group of Prof. Christophe Matthys (Nutrition & Metabolism Associated Diseases) aims to ‘optimize metabolic imbalances through nutrition’. To do so, there are three research streams: i) effect of nutrients/nutritional patterns on metabolic health: identify the effects & unravel the underlying mechanism; ii) lifestyle interventions: optimize the diet of specific populations and/or utilize diet as an adjuvant therapy and iii) methodology: research into dietary assessment methodologies to investigate the food/dietary intake of individuals and populations. The research of the group is not limited to one specific population, but is focused on various subgroups (e.g. Parkinson’s disease, malnutrition in older peopleand persons who have undergone bariatric surgery).

Project

The current vacancy fits within a recently approved project “Nutritional ketosis: a novel metabolic strategy for the treatment of lymphedema?”, funded by FWO-TBM. Lymphedema is a chronic and progressive disease characterized by excessive accumulation of lymph due to impaired lymphatic drainage, ultimately leading to tissue swelling and fibroadipose deposition. Although lymphedema is relatively common and associated with debilitating physical symptoms and a negative psychosocial impact, current treatment strategies are largely symptomatic. Patients with lymphedema therefore typically require lifelong therapy which, in addition to the disease itself, has a major impact on the patients’ quality of life (QOL). Interestingly, recent preclinical and our early phase clinical research has highlighted the importance of ketosis and ketone body oxidation in restoring lymphatic drainage and, as such, resolving excessively accumulated lymph. In this proposal, we therefore aim to validate the therapeutic effect of nutritional ketosis for the treatment of lymphedema and investigate the cost-effectiveness of this strategy by conducting a large randomized control trial (RCT). To this end, patients with unilateral early-stage lymphedema of the upper limb secondary to cancer treatment or other trauma will either consume a classic ketogenic diet (CKD arm) or ingest ketone ester supplements (KE arm) for 12 weeks in order to induce endogenous and exogenous nutritional ketosis, respectively. Patients randomized to the third control arm will consume a healthy diet, and all participants will receive standard of care treatment during the entire study period. The primary endpoint is improvement in lymphatic function at the end of dietary intervention, with key secondary endpoints being reduction in edema volume and improvement in QOL. Upon successful completion of our RCT, this novel treatment strategy will not only result in a considerable reduction of the physical and psychosocial complications of the disease, but also in a substantial deintensification of lymphedema treatment, thereby significantly improving the QOL of patients with lymphedema.Interested in the preliminary results: https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.13330 
The PhD candidate will be responsible for developing and conducting the clinical studies. This implies:• You develop and design, in collaboration with the other investigators of the consortium, the specific studies. • You are responsible for the preparation of studies documentation and ethical applications’• You contact and motivate volunteers to participate in the study. • You are responsible for the logistics of the project, including data collection, data management and data storage.• You are responsible for the day-to-day management of the project.• You report to the investigators and participate in team meetings.• You apply for additional funding. • You will assist with other research studies within the division

Profile

The candidate ideally has a Master in Medical Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Pharmacy, or Bio-engineering, with a strong interest in lymphedema, diet, metabolic effects of food and in clinical studies.
A first experience in dietary interventions or clinical studies is an asset. Further we are looking for:• Generic competences: dynamic; organizational skills; result-oriented; communicative; convincing; accurate; analytical; team-worker; independent, problem-solver• Plus points: knowledge of nutrition, statistics and knowledge/ability to apply phlebotomy. • Languages: Dutch (language of the patients) is required; English or French is an asset

Offer

We offer a PhD position in a stimulating environment at a top European university (THE Ranking 43), in well-equipped, experienced and internationally-oriented research units. In this enriching environment you will have the chance to acquire new knowledge and skills within a team of multidisciplinary researchers.

Interested?

For more information please contact Prof. dr. Sarah Thomis, mail: sarah.thomis@uzleuven.be or Prof. dr. Christophe Matthys, mail:.christophe.matthys@kuleuven.beYou can apply for this job no later than January 13, 2025 via the online application tool

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