Roel Verhaak
roelverhaak.bsky.social
Roel Verhaak
@roelverhaak.bsky.social
Yale Dpt of Neurosurgery, cancer research, brain tumors, ecDNA, likes football, drums and karaoke.
Pinned
New preprint on longitudinal treatment response signatures in IDH-mutant glioma from the GLASS Consortium www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Tumor-initiating genetics and therapy drive divergent molecular evolution in IDH-mutant gliomas
Astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas are slow-growing and treatment-sensitive IDH-mutant gliomas diagnosed at ages 30-50. Local tumor regrowth and treatment resistance is inevitable resulting in 3-10 y...
www.biorxiv.org
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Very excited to have this collaborative work on evaluating PK/PD and single-cell responses for Ribociclib+Everolimus in #rGBM published. It was such a great experience working with @kevin-johnson.bsky.social and @roelverhaak.bsky.social. @ivycenter.bsky.social @anchitien.bsky.social
November 8, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Delighted to share this new collaborative paper with the Ivy BTC where we performed deep characterization of glioma patients enrolled on a CDK4/6i Phase 0 trial academic.oup.com/neuro-oncolo... with @kevin-johnson.bsky.social @shwetalm.bsky.social @nadersanai.bsky.social
Single nucleus transcriptomics, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of CDK4/6 and mTOR inhibition in a phase 0/1 trial of recurrent high-grade glioma
AbstractBackground. Outcomes for adult patients with high-grade glioma (HGG) remain poor, necessitating new treatment strategies. Key challenges include po
academic.oup.com
November 8, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Sharks absolutely get cancer, and people claiming otherwise are pseudoscientific grifters preying on the desperate.

Even if sharks did not get cancer, eating shark would not cure your cancer any more than eating LeBron James would make you better at basketball.
October 30, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Senior Research Tech (Duke) – tumor immunobiology lab. Work with tumor/blood/CSF samples, culture patient-derived cell lines, assist single-cell assays, and support & lead research. Bio degree + research exp required. No visa sponsorship. Title may vary.
Apply → careers.duke.edu/job-invite/2...
RESEARCH TECHNICIAN III
RESEARCH TECHNICIAN III
careers.duke.edu
October 29, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
A new drug candidate for a difficult-to-treat type of lung cancer, developed by scientists in the Broad-Bayer oncology research alliance, targets HER2 mutations in lung cancer and shrinks tumors in mice and humans.
Broad-Bayer collaboration leads to drug candidate for a hard-to-treat type of lung cancer
The compound, now under priority review at FDA, targets HER2 mutations in lung cancer and shrinks tumors in mice and humans.
www.broadinstitute.org
October 16, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
The immunology of brain tumors | Science Immunology www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Happy to share this review article by @lukasbunse.bsky.social, Theresa Bunse and I @platten-lab.bsky.social, Michael Kilian, Fran Quintana @quintanalabhms.bsky.social.
The immunology of brain tumors
The cellular and molecular determinants of the antigenicity of brain tumors and the immunosuppressive brain tumor microenvironment are reviewed.
www.science.org
October 4, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Today’s lab meeting is a debate of recent Nature/Science retraction decisions: fair or not? Important lesson that not all retractions are the same, authors not always to blame.
September 16, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Almost half way to our fundraising target - and only two weeks to go!

I'll be riding the 100 mile #CloserToFreeRide to raise money to support cancer research and patient care. Please consider donating - every penny counts!

➡️ www.rideclosertofree.org/participants...

#CTFRide @ctfride.bsky.social
August 22, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Devastating news. The Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium has lost its ability to apply for federal funding upon which it is structured. Without this, it cant exist. This threatens access to clinical trials for children.
These children need MORE funding and MORE trials, not less.
They deserve better
August 19, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
🔥 Hot of the press in Neuro-Oncology! 🧠 #Glioblastoma in Adults: A Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO) and European Society of Neuro-Oncology (EANO) Consensus Review on Current Management and Future Directions.
academic.oup.com/neuro-oncolo...

@eanoassociation.bsky.social @neuroonc.bsky.social
Glioblastoma in Adults: A Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO) and European Society of Neuro-Oncology (EANO) Consensus Review on Current Management and Future Directions
Abstract. Glioblastoma is the most common type of malignant primary brain tumor and a major cause of morbidity and mortality. In 2021 the World Health Orga
academic.oup.com
August 19, 2025 at 7:33 AM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Findings from @roelverhaak.bsky.social et al. reveal lentiviral transduction + antibiotic selection dramatically ⬇️ ecDNA+ #cancer cells, revealing both a challenge for research and a potential therapeutic clue. #ecdna
aacrjournals.org/cancerrescom...
@aacrjournals.bsky.social
Selective depletion of cancer cells with extrachromosomal DNA via lentiviral infection
Abstract. Extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA), a major focal oncogene amplification mode found across cancer, has recently regained attention as an emerging cancer hallmark, with a pervasive presence across ...
aacrjournals.org
August 12, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Happy to provide a comment on recent work by the Maciejowski lab on ecDNA inheritance www.cell.com/molecular-ce... and authors.elsevier.com/a/1lZPK3vVUP... - with Xue Jin
authors.elsevier.com
August 11, 2025 at 11:26 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Excited to share our paper reporting significance of FGFR-alterations across pediatric gliomas. Congratulations April Apfelbaum and Eric Morin and to everyone across our labs and collaborators. Thank you to the foundations and patients/ families who made this happen. www.bandolab.org
rdcu.be/eyHcG
A diverse landscape of FGFR alterations and co-mutations suggests potential therapeutic strategies in pediatric low-grade gliomas
Nature Communications - A subset of pediatric gliomas harbour alterations in fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR)-family proteins. Here, the authors characterise the genomic landscape of 11,635...
rdcu.be
July 31, 2025 at 1:34 PM
PO just confirmed that our 5th percentile R01 is not getting funded. Past NCI Payline at 4 percent. Cant believe it.
July 23, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Goldschmidt's hopeful monsters in cancer: single cell DNAseq shows whole genome doubling (WGD) is an ongoing and frequent mutational process in ovarian cancer. www.nature.com/articles/s41... beautiful work from @sohrabshah.bsky.social and team
Ongoing genome doubling shapes evolvability and immunity in ovarian cancer - Nature
A single-cell sequencing study using more than 30,000 tumour genomes from human ovarian cancers shows that whole-genome doubling is an ongoing mutational process that drives tumour evolution and disru...
www.nature.com
July 17, 2025 at 8:24 AM
New preprint on longitudinal treatment response signatures in IDH-mutant glioma from the GLASS Consortium www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Tumor-initiating genetics and therapy drive divergent molecular evolution in IDH-mutant gliomas
Astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas are slow-growing and treatment-sensitive IDH-mutant gliomas diagnosed at ages 30-50. Local tumor regrowth and treatment resistance is inevitable resulting in 3-10 y...
www.biorxiv.org
July 16, 2025 at 6:36 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Together with friends and colleagues from #CMCO @yalecancer.bsky.social, @yalepathology.bsky.social, and further afield, we are the #CycloPaths

Closer to Free Ride
🚲06 September 2025
💪100 miles
#CTFRide

Join our team, spread the word, sponsor us if you can www.rideclosertofree.org/participants...
A fundraising page for Sarah Aitken
Join the Closer to Free Ride on Saturday, September 6th. Register or donate at RideCloserToFree.org.
www.rideclosertofree.org
June 27, 2025 at 4:12 PM
After three days of engaged discussions, we wrapped up the 2025 Mark Foundation on Genomic Instability. What a fun event with amazing participants.
June 27, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
It's 102°F/39°C in New Haven—but 30 international experts have braved the heatwave to join us at @yaleschoolofmed.bsky.social for a 3-day workshop on chromosomal instability in cancer. Thank you to our workshop organizers @roelverhaak.bsky.social, Florian Markowetz, & Aurelie Ernst!
June 24, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Excited to host nearly 30 international experts for the @themarkfdn.bsky.social workshop on genomic instability in cancer at @yaleschoolofmed.bsky.social today! This area of research is ready for the next breakthrough. @yalecancer.bsky.social
June 24, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Resolving spatial subclonal genomic heterogeneity of loss of heterozygosity and extrachromosomal DNA in gliomas
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Resolving spatial subclonal genomic heterogeneity of loss of heterozygosity and extrachromosomal DNA in gliomas - Nature Communications
Currently, there is limited knowledge about the spatial heterogeneity of glioma-driving molecular events. Here, the authors employ a multiomics approach to characterize the spatial transcriptomic hete...
www.nature.com
June 18, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
.@roelverhaak.bsky.social: “We’re recognizing that we need a paradigm shift – that we need to approach the disease [#braincancer] differently than we have so far.”
yalecancercenter.org/news-article...
@theaacr.bsky.social #NCRM25 #unitedbycancerresearch #btsm
'Paradigm Shift' in Brain Cancer Research Needed, Says Yale Professor
Researchers need to find solutions differently than in the past to break through with treatments for aggressive brain cancers.
yalecancercenter.org
May 27, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Excited to share our latest manuscript www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This was a great collaboration with Drs. Huse, Lang, @jesserdixon.bsky.social
May 22, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
Indigenous West Papuans claim Indonesian government is 'land grabbing' www.rnz.co.nz/internationa... West Papuans in Merauke claim the Indonesian government is stealing land to build its global "food barn" and feed its population of 280 million.
Indigenous West Papuans claim Indonesian government is 'land grabbing'
But Indonesia denies this, saying all land sales transactions are lawful and "there is no land grab without consent".
www.rnz.co.nz
May 16, 2025 at 5:36 AM
Reposted by Roel Verhaak
1/ Truly excited to share our new study that I had to privilege to co-lead during my PhD alongside great friends and collaborators @masashi-nomura.bsky.social, @kevin-johnson.bsky.social and Luciano Garofano, published at Nature Genetics @natureportfolio.nature.com!

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Deciphering the longitudinal trajectories of glioblastoma ecosystems by integrative single-cell genomics - Nature Genetics
Comparison of paired primary and recurrent glioblastomas at the single-cell transcriptomic level describes molecular and cellular trajectories associated with tumor recurrence, highlighting extensive ...
www.nature.com
May 10, 2025 at 10:57 PM