Professional profile
Lisa Bodei was born in July 12th,1969 in Pisa (Italy). She is currently a deputy-director physician at the Division of Nuclear Medicine of the European Institute of Oncology in Milano.
After attending the humanities secondary school in Pisa, in 1988 she started Medicine studies at the University of Pisa. In 1995 she graduated in Medicine, with a thesis on “Biodistribution, and dosimetry of 99mTc-glucaric acid: future perspectives in Nuclear Medicine” and in 1999 she specialized in Nuclear Medicine at the University of Pisa. In 1999 she worked as visiting student at the Department of Nuclear Medicine of the Erasmus University of Rotterdam (The Netherlands), carrying out researches on clinical applications of receptor scintigraphy with D2 dopamine receptor antagonists (123I-epidepride). The study particularly referred to pituitary adenomas, melanomas and neuroendocrine tumours; these tumours were characterized also in vitro by means of immunohistochemistry and tissue binding techniques (autoradiography) of 125I-epidepride. In February 2000, she won a grant from the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC) at the European Institute of Oncology in Milano on “Pre-targeting and receptor radiotherapy with -emitters”.
In February 1st 2001 she became an assistant staff physician at the Division of Nuclear Medicine of the European Institute of Oncology of Milano. Since then, she carries out both clinical routine and scientific research, heading the branch on radiolabelled peptides. In April 2005 she was appointed senior assistant. Since July 2008 she was appointed deputy-director. She was scientific secretary for the
“1st Milan Thyroid Cancer Conference” held in Milano on July 2004. In academic years 2003-2004, 2004-2005, 2005-2006, 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 she gave classes of Nuclear Medicine Therapy in the course of “Oncologic Radiotherapy” at the School of Specialization in Nuclear Medicine of the University of Pisa. Since 2006 she was designated Member of the Therapy Committee of the European
141 Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM). In January 2008, she was appointed vice-chairperson of the Therapy Committee of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine. In May 2008 she was instructor in the Therapy-Dosimetry course organized by the European Association of Nuclear Medicine in Vienna. She spoke in numerous national and international congresses. She held invited lectures and CME invited lectures in the annual congresses organized by the European Association of Nuclear Medicine and the Society of Nuclear Medicine. She published 43 articles on international peer-reviewed journals, 5 invited book chapters and 5 publications on national journals, besides several abstracts on international and national journals. She was appointed editor of the special issue for the fiftieth anniversary of the “Quarterly Journal of Nuclear Medicine”, published in 2006.
142 Chapter 13
Acknowledgements
There are many people I have to acknowledge and thank for the invaluable contribution in this work over many years. It has been an honour and privilege to be working with each one of them.
I would like to express my gratitude to my promoter, Prof. Dr. Rudi A. Dierkx, for offering me the unique possibility of carrying out the PhD on peptide-receptor radionuclide therapy in a prestigious University, such as Groningen. His vast knowledge and skill in many areas was the best assistance in writing this thesis.
I would also like to express my gratefulness to my promoter, Prof. Dr. Alberto Signore, for his friendship, for the important assistance he provided at all levels in the writing of this thesis and the expertise, understanding, and patience for all the Saturdays I asked him to work with me during this experience.
A very special thanks goes to my co-promoter, my director and maestro, Dr.
Giovanni Paganelli, who made me join the European Institute of Oncology (IEO) in Milano, and taught me in all these years the art of clinical medicine and the method of carrying out a scientific study, not disjointed from clinic.
I would like to thank the whole Reading Committee for going through this entire thesis and for the precious suggestions that enriched it a lot.
I would like to thank my first teachers at the University of Pisa, Prof. Dr. Giuliano Mariani, for introducing me to Nuclear Medicine and to research activity before graduation and for involving me in important scientific projects during all these years; Prof. Dr. Marco Ferdeghini, presently at the University of Verona, for introducing me to Nuclear Medicine therapy in thyroid and other diseases, for involving me in research projects and for the extensive scientific discussions that we carried out along these years.
I would like to thank all the people from the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, where I spent an intense and formative part of my last year of specialization in Nuclear Medicine: a very special thanks goes to Dr. Dik J. Kwekkeboom, who introduced me to receptors and peptide receptor therapies, and for the exciting scientific discussions that, since that period, we always have every time we meet; a very special thanks also to Prof. Dr. Eric P. Krenning, who introduced me to peptide receptor radionuclide therapy, and to all the people working in the Department of Nuclear Medicine; I would also like to thank sincerely Prof. Dr. Leo J. Hofland, who taught me a lot on in vitro research and on the importance of an impeccable scientific work, and Prof. Dr. Steven W.J. Lamberts and all the people from the laboratory of the Department of Internal Medicine for their significant help and suggestions.
I would like to thank heartily my colleague, my paranymph and friend Dr. Diego Ferone, presently at the University of Genova, for introducing me to neuroendocrinology during my experience in Rotterdam and for all the things he taught to me during all these years, for all the scientific work we shared and all the exciting discussions we have weekly, which helped to enrich the experience, not to mention his beautiful friendship and his wonderful hospitality in Capri every time I go there.
Many of the studies in this thesis would not have been possible without the
143 precious help of Dr. Chiara M. Grana, my colleague at IEO and friend, to whom goes all my gratitude for her scientific contribution in every activity I carried out in the last years and her important suggestions in every field of my activity that she always gives with an enthusiastic friendship.
I would like to express my gratitude to all my colleagues of the Division of Nuclear Medicine in IEO, and in particular my friends Dr. Marta Cremonesi, Dr. Maribel Lopera Sierra, Dr. Mirco Bartolomei, and Dr. Concetta De Cicco, for their contributes in many of the studies in this thesis and their invaluable help in many phases of my career. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Marco Chinol for his scientific assistance throughout this period.
I would also like to thank Dr. Nicola Fazio, from Medical Oncology Division in IEO, for the oncological debates and exchange of knowledge we have every week and for teaching me that, in medical research, the principal aim is not to establish “who is the winner”.
My gratitude also goes to all my friends, who were near me during all these years and contributed to the fulfilment of this work. In particular I would like to thank Dr.
Lucia Marino, my University mate, Dr. Elena Lazzeri, with whom I share this wonderful experience, Dr. Paola Erba, my colleague of researches and vacations, Dr. Silvia Marchesi, the macroeconomist of the group, Alberto Colautti, Luca Evangelisti, Ilaria Petrini, Virginia Piazza and all the other friends from Alitalia who brought me back in the air after some years of crazy travels all around Europe by train, and who thus contributed to make all this possible.
I would like to thank heartily Dr. Raffele Morelli and all the staff of “Edizioni Riza”, particularly Dr. Duilio Tagliabue, for their precious help in publishing this thesis.
I would also like to thank my family, in particular my parents, Remo and Gabriella, my sister Chiara, and my grandmother Lea, to whom this thesis is dedicated, for the support they provided to me through my entire life.
Furthermore, I have to acknowledge the financial assistance of agencies such as CNR, MIUR and AIRC, without which many of the researches in this thesis would not have been possible.
Finally, I would like to express my gratefulness to all the patients who were so generous as to participate to the clinical studies described in this thesis.