Lieve Wierinck
Digestive Cancers Europe Chair of the Board, Belgium

Along with being a pharmacist and a former cancer patient, Lieve’s career in politics means she applies her medical, patient and policy expertise to her work as Chair of the DiCE Board.

Lieve Wierinck was a Member of the European Parliament (ALDE – Liberal Democrats) until 2019. She was a member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE). In that capacity, she strove to improve the innovation and competitiveness of Europe.

She was also a member of the informal groups “MEPs Against Cancer” (MAC), and the MEP Interest Group on the Patient Access Partnership (PACT). Earlier this year, Lieve Wierinck received the Parliament Magazine Award for the Best Health MEP.

Lieve was a member of the Belgian Parliament from 2011 to 2014. She was Chair of the National Women’s Group of the Flemish liberal party (Open VLD) from 2014 till 2017. She was a member of the Municipal Council of Zaventem from 1994 to 2018, and also the Chair of the Local Public Welfare Office (OCMW) for twelve years.

She also worked as a pharmacist for 30 years in Zaventem. She is a colon cancer survivor.

Zorana Maravic
Digestive Cancers Europe CEO, Belgium

A part of Europacolon and now DiCE since 2012, Zorana has always worked closely with our Full Members and Associate Members. With grace, poise and calm, she is working to help Members’ organisations and DiCE grow.

As CEO, Zorana continues her commitment to DiCE taking on the management of the organisation and ensuring the delivery of its missions and goals. In her past role as Director of Operations she was responsible for the co-ordination and support of Member groups, as well as strengthening the network, through establishing relationships with new organisations. During this she has proven her capacity to deliver successfully. Key projects have included:

• A Survey on the Unmet Needs of Patients Living with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer (mCRC). She recruited more than 800 patients and had the results under her authorship published widely
• DiCE events: Masterclass events – an educational annual meeting for Member groups
• Awareness campaigns including European Colorectal Cancer Awareness Campaigns (ECCAM)
• Pharmaceutical industry and independent consortia projects
• Developing patient support materials with the Patient Advisory Committee (PAC)

Zorana also acts as a public speaker on topics such as patient support, biosimilars and CRC screening. From 2016 until 2018, Zorana served as a Board Member of EuropaColon.

Before working in the Not-For-Profit sector, Zorana worked for 10 years in the pharmaceutical industry, primarily in sales and marketing of innovative oncology drugs as well as on oncology clinical trials.

She holds a degree in molecular biology from the University of Belgrade, Serbia. In 2017, at the University of Sheffield, UK she gained an Executive MBA in Health Management.

Marianna Vitaloni
Digestive Cancers Europe Medical and Scientific Project Manager, Belgium

Marianna is a patient advocate and, at DiCE, co-ordinates medical and scientific initiatives using her multidisciplinary experience to build the bridge between science and global health.

She has been passionate about human health and wellbeing from the beginning of her professional career. She laureated in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at the University of Pavia (Italy) where she also obtained her PhD in Genetic and Human Pathology as a result of international collaborations with American and Spanish institutions. As a biomedical researcher, her practice focused on regenerative medicine, stem cells and disease therapies.

During her research studies, a strong interest in public and global health drove her career towards international initiatives and projects aiming at improving human health. She graduated in public health and collaborated in the WHO Genomics and Global health initiative. Then she joined the Osteoarthritis Foundation International where she directed projects aiming at improving the quality of life of patients, promoting healthy lifestyle habits and developing new therapies and treatments. She also led the Osteoarthritis Patients Task Force, an international alliance of patients’ organisations.

Gianluca Mauri
Onclogy Departament, Niguarda Hospital, Italy

I received a degree of Doctor of Medicine and Surgery at Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, and a degree of Medical Oncologist at Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy. Then, I recently completed a PhD in Molecular Oncology at IFOM-ETS The AIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology and Università degli Studi di Milano. In 2018 I was awarded the Ermenegildo Zegna Founder’s Scholarship. Since Novembre 2024, I am working as Medical Oncology as permanent staff member at Ospedale Niguarda, Milan, IT.

I am committed to clinical care of persons with solid tumors and to research and development of novel therapies. Research programs comprise mostly phase I-II clinical studies focusing on gastrointestinal cancers. Since 2018, I am particularly dedicated to clinical care of early-onset colorectal cancer (EO-CRC) patients. In parallel, I am working on several translational research projects aiming at underpinning the biological features of these peculiar subset of cancers.

Eric van Cutsem
Professor of Digestive Oncology at University of Leuven, Belgium

Eric Van Cutsem, MD, PhD, is full professor at University of Leuven (KULeuven) and the University Hospitals Gasthuisberg, Belgium and Division Head of Digestive Oncology and since October 2023 Professor Emeritus with tasks at the University of Leuven, amongst which Board member of the Faculty of Medicine of KULeuven.

He is a member of the Belgian Royal Academy of Medicine and president of the Belgian Foundation against Cancer (Stichting tegen Kanker; Fondation contre le Cancer).
In 2018 he became doctor honoris causa of the Medical University of Warsaw, Poland and received several national and international awards, amongst which were in 2019 the ESMO Award and the European Awards in Medicine for Cancer Research. He became in 2024 honorary member of the Hungarian Society of Clinical Oncology and of the Spanish TTD group (Group of Gastrointestinal Tumors).

He published extensively: >740 articles in PubMed and more than 1600 according Thomson Web of Science, leading to > 120.000 citations and an H-factor of 150. He is worldwide in the top 1% of highest cited researchers in the field of Clinical Medicine, is amongst the highest Cited researchers at the University of Leuven and in the top 3 most cited Medical Scientists in Belgium.

His research interests are various aspects of Gastrointestinal and Digestive cancers (colorectal, gastric, pancreas, bile duct, esophageal cancer and neuroendocrine tumors). He serves on many industry advisory boards for new anti-cancer drugs and treatment modalities and Independent Data Monitoring Committee of clinical trials.

He is known as world wide clinical expert in Gastrointestinal Oncology and consults for patients across the globe and featered in Belgium in the media program: Topdokters.
He co-founded and is chair of ESMO/World Congress on Gastrointestinal Cancer in Barcelona, Spain and continues to chair ESMO GI. He serves/served on the board or key committee of ESMO (European Society Medical Oncology; executive board, several committees), UEG (United European Gastroenterology; educational committee, public affairs committee, scientific committee), ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology; program committee, international affairs committee), ENET (European NeuroEndocrine Society; advisory board, registry), EORTC (European Organisation Research Treatment Cancer; executive board, chair of GI Cancer group), ECO (European Cancer Organisation; program committee), ESDO (European Society Digestive Oncology; president), ESO (European School of Oncology; Scientific council) and of patient advocacy groups EuropaColon (medical director) and Digestive Cancers Europe (DICE; co-founder, executive board), the Foundation Engie (CSR) France & Belgium.

He has been appointed from 2025 onwards as member of Scientific Council of IARC /WHO (International Agency for Research on Cancer/ World Health Organisation).
He was chairman of the governmental colon cancer prevention task force in Flanders, Belgium, was/is in Belgian active as president and treasurer of Belgian Group Digestive Oncology and as president/vice-president of Familial Polyposis Association (FAPA).

He is/was member of the Scientific Advisory board for different international hospitals/cancer centers: Institut National du Cancer (INCA), Toulouse & Paris, France; University of Ulm & Leipzig, Germany; Humanitas Hospital, Milan, Italy & Avignon, France and is member of the board of directors of the regional hospital of Halle (vice-president since 09-2023) and member of the board of CUROZ, network of hospitals in East-Flanders & Vlaams Brabant, Belgium.
He was instrumental in the law on the recognition of Digestive Oncology and was member of the governmental commission of recognition for specialists in gastroenterology/ digestive oncology from 2014-2024.

Eric Grant
Communications and Media Manager, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), Geneva

Eric Grant is the Communications and Media Manager at the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Previously, he served as the Communications Manager at the Global Commission on Drug Policy, working with former Swiss President Ruth Dreifuss and other former Heads of State and Government. He has degrees in political science, journalism, and theology, and is bilingual in English and French, with practical knowledge of German

Katell Maguet
eo-CRC patient, France

Katell Maguet is a French researcher based in the Netherlands. She is a scientist at heart, passionate about working with data and innovative approaches. Over the years, her focus has shifted from numbers to understanding and enhancing people’s experiences.

In 2021, at the age of 40, she was diagnosed with a Stage 3 colorectal cancer. Through three years of treatment, her quality of life was profoundly affected. Along her patient journey, she faced various challenges, including the low awareness of early-onset colorectal cancer, the complexity of navigating the healthcare system and the difficulty of obtaining timely information.

She chose to become a patient advocate, to give a voice to patients and to raise awareness about early-onset colorectal cancer among both patients and medical teams. By blending her multidisciplinary background with her personal experience as a patient, she aspires to make a significant impact on the cancer patient’s journey.

Currently a EUPATI student, Katell collaborates with several cancer patients organizations.

Ruel Jacob
Digestive Cancers Europe Communication Manager, Belgium

As Communications Manager, Ruel contributes to DiCE’s events, promotion and internal/external communications to build connections, increase public awareness and ultimately bring value to a more significant number of digestive cancer patients in Europe.

Ruel is an experienced communication practitioner with a demonstrated history of working in several European associations in Brussels. Skilled in communication management, social media strategy and customer satisfaction, Ruel is a marketing professional with a Master of Science in Communication Studies focused on New Media and Society in Europe from Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

His enthusiasm for digital media and communications motivates him to excel while building relationships, organising projects and inspiring optimism.