Dr. Manasi Agrawal, M.D., M.S.
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, USA
Manasi Agrawal, MD, MS, is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and a gastroenterologist at the Mount Sinai Hospital, with focus in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Dr. Agrawal’s additional affiliations include the Department of Environmental Medicine at Mount Sinai and Center for Molecular Prediction of IBD, Aalborg University, Copenhagen, Denmark. Dr. Agrawal is the inaugural Director of Environmental Gastroenterology in the Henry D. Janowitz Division of Gastroenterology. Her research focuses on the role of the environment on IBD risk, towards disease prediction and prevention. She has ongoing works to characterize the role of PFAS, pesticides, microplastics, metals, and related exposures on intestinal inflammation and IBD. She is also interested in the role of environmental shifts in the global south contributing to increasing IBD incidence, and she collaborates with several global research networks. Dr. Agrawal is supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases K23 Career Development Award to study early life risk factors for IBD, the International Organization for the Study of IBD, the American College of Gastroenterology, the Helmsley Trust Fund, the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, among others. For her excellence in clinical and translational research, Dr. Agrawal has received the Healio Rising Disruptor Award (2024), The Faculty Council Junior Award at Mount Sinai (2024) and the Dr. Harold and Golden Lamport Clinical Research Award at Mount Sinai (2023).
Dr. Agrawal’s clinical focus is in caring for patients with IBD. She participates in writing guidelines relating to IBD care with the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization and the American Gastroenterological Association. She serves as the Secretary of the New York Crohn's and Colitis Organization as well as on editorial boards of multiple GI journals.
Mr. René Anour, Chair EMA BMWP and Senior Clinical Expert/Head of National Scientific Advice
AGES, Austria
René Anour is working as a senior clinical expert for the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care, where he is involved in centralised European Marketing Authorisations and EMA Scientific Advice. He is furthermore Process Lead of National Scientific Advice at his agency. He has been a member of the EMA’s Biosimilar Medicinal Products Working Party since 2020 and has been elected the Working Party’s chair in 2023. He is furthermore a member of the HMA Biosimilar Working Group as well as the European Representative in the Biosimilar Group of the International Council for Harmonisation (ICH), a global harmonisation initiative for drug development.
Dr. Dider Baert, M.D.
AZ Maria Middelares
Didier Baert is working as a gastro-enterologist in Maria Middelares hospital in Ghent since 1996.
He has a special interest in inflammatory bowel disease.
He also has expertise in quality care management, value based health care and transmural care.
He works for the hospital as a medical care manager for half a day per week.
His hobbies are karate and painting (oil paint on canvas).
Dr. Filip Baert, M.D., PhD
AZ Delta
Filip Baert MD PhD is currently chairing the IBD Unit and Head of the Cluster Abdomen at AZ Delta Hospital and Radar in Roeselare, Belgium, where he has developed special expertise in IBD, microscopic colitis as well as celiac disease. He is currently also Managing Director of IBDIM (former Head of UR-Care steering committee). He has over 25 years of experience in clinical research and took part in most of the registration trials of the newer advanced treatments in IBD and was among the top recruiters in many academic trials (e.g. Top Down, Calm, LOVE studies).
Filip graduated in medicine, surgery and obstetrics from the University of Leuven in 1989. He then underwent specialization in internal medicine, gastrointestinal and liver diseases (1994), becoming a Fellow in Gastroenterology of the University of Chicago Hospitals under the supervision of Dr. Stephan Hanauer. After graduation he was a fellow at the Amsterdam Medical Center and UKE Hospital in Hamburg. Next to his clinical practice he continued to be involved in translational research and acquired a PhD from the University of Leuven in 2014 on pharmacokinetics of monoclonal antibodies.
He is director of the GI Fellowship training program in AZ Delta for the Universities of Ghent and Leuven and head of the CTC (Clinical Trial Center) in AZ Delta and serves in the Erkennings commisie for gastro-enterology Belgium.
He authored and co-authored > 200 peer reviewed (Pubmed listed) publications. Dr. Baert served as the President of BIRD (Belgian IBD Research and Development) from 2020-2023 and currently holds the position of past-president. Among his ongoing important research projects are two European registries UR-Care (a pan European IBD electronic record/dBase) and of I-Care (Ibd CAncer and seRious infections in Europe). Finally, he serves on the editorial Board of the Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis and is a reviewer for many peer reviewed Journals, and for the ECCO and UEG abstracts.
Dr. Peter Bossuyt, M.D., PhD
Imelda Hospital
Dr Bossuyt studied medicine at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, and graduated magna cum laude in 2004. He pursued his GI fellowship in several hospitals in Belgium and at UZ Leuven. After completing his GI fellowship in 2009, he took up a fellowship in advanced endoscopy at the Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam. Between 2010 and 2015 he was a consulting staff member at the University Hospitals of Leuven. He obtained a PhD entitled “Value of endoscopic scoring and imaging for the prognosis and follow up of IBD” at the University of Leuven in 2021. His research focuses on clinical and strategic trials in IBD and the definitions of endoscopic and imaging targets in IBD. His clinical works focuses on e-health tools in IBD and quality improvement projects.
He is currently international principal investigator of 3 clinical trials in IBD and endoscopy. He is an editorial board member of the Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis, past-president of the Belgian IBD Research and Development Group, past-board member of ECCO’s Clinical Research Committee, ClinCom and past-board member of the Belgian society of gastrointestinal endoscopy, BSGIE. He won the Belgian IBD research price in 2011, 2021 and 2025, the ESGE Innovation of the year award in 2018 and the ECCO IIS award in 2025. He published over 150 peer-reviewed articles in the NEJM, Lancet, JAMA, Gastroenterology, Gut, Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology, JCC among others (H-index 48).
Prof. Dr. Christiane Buskens, M.D., PhD
Dr. Clara Caenepeel, M.D., PhD
ZOL
Dr. Clara Caenepeel received her degree in medicine in 2014 from KU Leuven with high distinction. She did her specialist training at UZ Leuven, AZ Groeninge and AZ Sint-Maarten under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Jan Tack. In 2020, she obtained her PhD with the doctorate “Therapeutic manipulation of the intestinal microbiome in inflammatory bowel disease” under the direction of Prof. Dr. Séverine Vermeire, receiving several awards for her research.
Dr. Caenepeel continues her training in proctology at UZ Leuven. In 2022, Dr. Caenepeel started working at ZOL and currently works in the department of Gastroenterology at ZOL Genk. Her particular areas of interest are pelvic floor pathology and inflammatory bowel disease.
Dr. Ahmed Chaoui, M.D.
AZ Delta
Ahmed M. Chaoui graduated as MD from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. He completed his training in general surgery at AZ Damiaan Oostende, AZ Delta, Máxima Medical Center in Veldhoven (the Netherlands), and University Hospitals Leuven.
He subsequently pursued advanced specialization in colorectal surgery through a dedicated fellowship at University Hospitals Leuven under the mentorship of Prof. Dr. A. D’Hoore, Prof. Dr. A. Wolthuis, and Prof. Dr. G. Bislenghi. He further enhanced his expertise through international postgraduate training at Humanitas Research Hospital in Milan and at the Cleveland Clinic Main Campus in the United States.
He then joined the Department of Abdominal Surgery at AZ Delta Roeselare. His clinical practice is focused on colorectal surgery, with particular emphasis on rectal surgery and the management of inflammatory bowel disease.
Prof. Dr. André D'Hoore, M.D., PhD
UZ Leuven
André D’Hoore graduated as MD at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium in 1988. He became surgeon in 1994 and joined the staff of Abdominal Surgery at the University Clinic Leuven. He received an international postgraduate training in colorectal surgery at the Cleveland Clinic in Fort Lauderdale, St. Mark’s Hospital in London and the Hôpital Cantonal in Geneva. In 2000 he became a European Board Qualified Surgeon in ColoProctology.
In 2008 he became associate professor and in 2017 full professor at the Faculty of Medicine, KULeuven and contributes to graduate a postgraduate teaching of students and trainees in abdominal surgery. He has extensive expertise in colorectal cancer surgery, minimally invasive techniques and watch-and-wait for rectal cancer. André D’Hoore is a regular invited speaker at international surgical meetings.
His scientific work resulted in more than 340 peer-reviewed papers and different book chapters. He is an honorary member of the American College of Surgeons, the American Surgical Association, the American Society of Colorectal Surgeons and the Italian Surgical Society. He is Professor honoris causa at the Coimbra University in Portugal
Evva De Jonckere, IBD Nurse
AZ Delta
Evva De Jonckere received her Bachelor degree in Nursing in 2014. Immediately after, she pursued a Master’s degree in Nursing at Ghent University from 2014 to 2016.
During her studies, she developed a strong interest in patient-centered care. After completing her Master’s, she began working as an oncology nurse. She worked in oncology for two years, gaining valuable experience in supporting patients through intensive treatment processes. In 2018, she made the transition to the role of IBD nurse. She collaborates closely with physicians and multidisciplinary teams to deliver integrated and personalized care. Her work focuses on patient education, follow-up, and improving quality of life.
Prof. Dr. Marc Ferrante, M.D., PhD
UZ Leuven
Professor Marc Ferrante is a Full Professor at KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, and staff member of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the University Hospitals Leuven since 2012. His main research topics include biological therapy, post-operative recurrence, endoscopy, and quality of care. Prof. Ferrante has published more than 350 papers in high ranked gastroenterology journals (h-index: 75). He has received numerous research grants for his work and received the United European Gastroenterology (UEG) Rising Star Award in Gastroenterology in 2014. Prof. Ferrante holds a basic-clinical research position at the Flemish Foundation for Scientific Research (FWO Vlaanderen). He has been chair of both the Clinical and Scientific Committee of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO). He is currently Secretary and Board member of the Belgian IBD Research and Development (BIRD) group.
Dr. Liselotte Fierens, PhD
KU Leuven
In 2019, Liselotte graduated with a degree in Biomedical Sciences from the Catholic University of Leuven, specializing in Management and Communication. Later that year, she deepened her focus on the field of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), the subject of her master’s thesis, by starting a PhD with the Leuven IBD research group. After successfully defending her PhD on improving the quality of care for patients with IBD in March 2024, Liselotte continued her work as a postdoctoral researcher within the same group. In 2025, she stayed for five months at the Health Economics Research Centre at the University of Oxford, expanding her knowledge and expertise in health economics to support future research projects.
Prof. Marietta Iacucci, M.D., PhD
Univeristy College Cork, Ireland
Prof Marietta Iacucci is a leading researcher in AI and a pioneer in ‘Endo-Histo-Barrier -Omics’, which fuses endoscopic and histologic information with ‘multi-omics data' in Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Prof Iacucci qualified in medicine at the University of Rome and obtained her PhD in 2009. She trained and conducted research in Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan, and previously held permanent faculty positions at the University of Calgary, Canada, and the University of Birmingham, UK. She was a key investigator at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in Birmingham. She led transdisciplinary work that predicted disease courses and outcomes in colonic neoplasia and inflammatory bowel disease, bridging engineering, bioinformatics, and imaging/omics.
She has been nominated for leadership positions in multiple international organisations. She is a fellow of the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. American Gastroenterological Association Fellow, a member of the e-Learning Taskforce and research officer of Governing Board of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO), member of the International Inflammatory Bowel Disease Organisation (IOIBD), member of the Global Interventional Inflammatory Bowel Disease Group, sits on the ESGE advanced imaging in colorectal neoplasia guidelines committee and IBD quality improvement committee working group.
She has delivered key plenary talks at prestigious international conferences such as the American Gastroenterological Association/American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the International Organisation for the Study of IBD, the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation, and the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Her goal is to drive transdisciplinary precision medicine research in IBD and colon cancer.
Mr. Carl Jacobs, MBE
Boost-Training
Carl brings over 20 years of experience in leadership development, commercial excellence and organisational performance.
He designs and delivers high-impact programmes for C-level leaders, managers and teams across Europe. His career includes more than a decade in the financial services sector, followed by senior Learning and Development roles and international consultancy work, with a strong focus on healthcare.
Carl is known for his energetic facilitation style and ability to quickly connect learning to real business challenges.
Prof. Konstantinos Katsanos, M.D., PhD
University of Ioannina, Greece
Dr Konstantinos Katsanos is Professor of Gastroenterology at the Medical School, University of Ioannina, Greece. Dr Katsanos has served as European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization (ECCO) Educational Committee member, he is currently ECCO e-learning champion and has also served as a member of the governing board of the Greek Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) Study Group. IBD is his field of expertise for the last 26 years. He completed his PhD on IBD in the Medical School of Ioannina, Greece, his postdoctoral clinical fellowship in the Department of Gastroenterology in KU Leuven, Belgium and his sabbaticals at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York, NY and at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA and Mac Master Hospital, Canada.
Dr Katsanos has worked on many clinical studies and drug protocols on IBD and has lectured, authored or co-authored more than 230 papers in peer-reviewed journals with more than 15,000 citations and an h-index 56.He speaks excellent English and French and has basic knowledge of Spanish and Flemish.
Ms. Bep Keersmaekers, MSc Clin. Psych
UZ Leuven
Bep Keersmaekers has a master in Clinical and Health Psychology and is following a postgraduate degree in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy at KU Leuven, Belgium. In 2021 she joined the IBD team. With great dedication and commitment, she is responsible for the support of patients with IBD-related psychological complaints. She is mainly available for outpatient consultations, but she also sees patients at their bedside in case of hospitalization.
Together with the patient, she tries to identify the psychological difficulties and how to cope with them in the best possible way.
In addition, Bep conducts research into the psychological factors in IBD and bases her treatments on the most recent scientific research in IBD psychology.
Prof. Debbie Laukens, PhD
Ghent University
Debby Laukens is full professor of Experimental Gastroenterology at Ghent University (Belgium) and Principal Investigator of the IBD Research Unit at the department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. Her research focuses on chronic intestinal inflammation, particularly inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and explores the central role of the gut in neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease and behavior-related disorders such as fatigue. One of her key areas of interest is building in vitro and in vivo mimetic models to dissect gut–brain communication mechanisms, particularly those involved in the pathogenesis of neuroinflammation in a background of IBD.
Prof. Dr. Claire Liefferinckx, M.D., PhD
Hôpital Erasme
Claire Liefferinckx obtained her medical degree in 2014 and completed her PhD in 2019 at the Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium. During her postdoctoral fellowship at GIGA (Liège), she worked with Michel Georges’ team, developing expertise in human genomics, transcriptomics, and eQTL analysis. Since 2023, she is half-time FNRS researcher, and half-time clinician in gastroenterology at Erasme hospital (Brussels). She is currently member of the SciCom within the BIRD group. Her research focuses on the pharmacokinetics of IBD biologics, IBD genetics and gut microbiota. Together with Prof. Franchimont, she developed a laboratory dedicated to the study of gut microbiota. Since 2024, she has also been a Professor of Gastroenterology at UMons.
Prof. Dr. Triana Lobatón, M.D., PhD
UZ Gent
Triana Lobatón finished her training as gastroenterologist in Barcelona and in 2015 she obtained her PhD on "Fecal calprotectin as a surrogate marker of disease activity in IBD patients" at the University of Barcelona. As part of her PhD program, she spent 18 months (2013-2014) at Leuven University Hospital under the supervision of Prof. Séverine Vermeire.
Since December 2017 Dr.Lobaton is working as a full time staff member at the Department of Gastroenterology at Ghent University Hospital, where she leads the IBD unit. In 2019 she became assistant professor at University of Gent. Her clinical activity and research is focused on IBD. She is currently involved as PI in several RCT of new therapeutic compounds.
Triana Lobatón has been coordinator of the young GETECCU (Spanish group of Crohn and Colitis), member of the ECCO CONFER task force and National Representative for BIRD at ECCO and she is currently one of the members of Educom from BIRD (Belgian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research and Development).
Prof. Dr. Dieter Mesotten, M.D., PhD
ZOL
Dr. Mesotten is the head of anaesthesiology department, director of the anaesthesia training programme and chairman of the Clinical Trial Unit at ZOL-Genk. As associate professor at UHasselt he lectures clinical trial design and Good Clinical Practice. He worked from 2008 to 2015 as a senior staff member in the Dept Intensive Care Medicine of the University Hospitals Leuven, while doing research as assistent professor at KU Leuven and senior clinical investigator of the Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO). He obtained his PhD under supervision of Prof Greet Van den Berghe at the KU Leuven in 2003. After obtaining his Medical degree at the KU Leuven in 1999, he was a doctoral researcher at the Kolling Institute of Medical Research Kolling Institute of the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney from 1999 to 2002. He is a co-author of more than 100 publications.
Ms. Charlotte Minsart, PhD
Erasme Hospital
Charlotte Minsart graduated in 2012 with a Master’s degree in Biomedical Sciences from the Université Libre de Bruxelles. Following the completion of her master’s thesis, she worked as a researcher at the Laboratory of Experimental Gastroenterology (LGE-ULB), where she pursued her research leading to the completion of her PhD in February 2021. During her PhD, she had the opportunity to contribute to research projects focusing on inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). In April 2017, she joined the IBD team at Erasme Hospital as a study coordinator. In this role, she coordinates both pharmaceutical-sponsored and academic clinical trials conducted at her site and she continues to be involved in translational research activities. To further enhance her knowledge and support her daily work, she joined the BINASTORIA group in 2017 and then, the BINASTORIA board in October 2023.
Prof. Dr. Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet, M.D., PhD
McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet is a gastroenterologist and an internationally recognized expert in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). He is the top-rated expert in Crohn’s disease in the world according to “Expertscape”. His current H index is 118 with more than 1,200 publications indexed in PubMed. Moreover, since the age of 45, he is ranked by Clarivate among the “highly cited researchers” worldwide. Two bibliometric analyses ranked Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet No. 1 in the top 14 authors of relevant literature of IBD diagnosis in nearly 10 years (Liu C, et al. Front Immunol. 2022 - PMID: 36189197) and No. 1 in the top 10 most productive authors in Crohn’s disease treatment research between 2004 and 2023 (Xu L, et al. Front Pharmacol. 2024 - PMID: 39439890). Between 2020 and 2023, he was the President of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization (ECCO) and Scientific Secretary of the International Organization for the Study of IBD (IOIBD), the two leading international organizations in IBD. Between 2015 and 2023, he was the President of the Groupe d'Etude Thérapeutique des Affections Inflammatoires du Tube Digestif (GETAID). In 2023, he was appointed adjunct professor at McGill University Health Centre (Canada). He is the President of the ICARE project, a European prospective cohort that has enrolled 10,000 IBD patients between 2016 and 2019 and that is assessing for the first time the real risk-benefit profile of current therapeutic strategies. He has initiated and has been responsible for numerous international projects (Selecting Therapeutic Targets in IBD (STRIDE) initiative, defining early Crohn’s disease, etc.) and has developed several indexes such as the IOIBD disease severity index, the World Health Organization disability index for IBD and the Nancy histological index.
Prof. Dr. Catherine Reenaers, M.D., PhD
CHU de Liège
Professor Catherine Reenaers is a senior gastroenterologist at the University hospital of Liege, Belgium. She completed her specialist training in the University hospital of Liège and was a research assistant and research fellow of the Belgian fund of research (FNRS) from 2004 to 2011. She obtained her PhD in 2008. After her PhD, Professor Reenaers was a Senior Clinical and Research Fellow of Dr Travis at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford. She returned to Liège to take a permanent position as IBD specialist where she works with Professor Edouard Louis. She is full professor and has a charge of course at the University of Liège. She is part of several scientific associations including the head of the scientific committee of BIRD (Belgian Intestinal Research and Development group), the scientific committee of the GETAID (Groupe d'Etude Thérapeutique des Affections Inflammatoires du Tube Digestif) and the French association of ultrasound (AFUMI). She was trained for intestinal ultrasound in San Rafaelle Hospital, Milano, Italy with Prof Mariangella Allocca and obtained her IBUS certificate in 2024. She is a member of the Communication Commission of the IBUS since 2026.
Mr. Dries Reynders, Statistician
Ghent University
Dries Reynders is a statistical consultant at Stat-Gent (Ghent University) with a broad interest in health related topics. His main focus is on the design and analysis of experimental (RCTs, Single Arm Trials, Dose finding studies,…) and observational clinical studies. He is currently involved in IMI-SISAQOL, developing guidelines on the analysis of Quality of Care in Oncology.
Prof. Dr. João Sabino, M.D., PhD
UZ Leuven
Prof. Dr. João Sabino is assistant professor at KU Leuven (Leuven, Belgium) and staff member of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the University Hospitals Leuven since 2019.
João Sabino graduated as MD at the University of Lisbon, Portugal. Part of his MD training was done at the University of Salamanca, Spain, under the Erasmus program. In 2010, he moved to Belgium for his gastroenterology fellowship, which included internships at the University Hospitals of Leuven, Hospital of Lier, and Hospital of Genk.
In December 2017, he successfully defended his PhD thesis entitled “Host-microbiome interactions in health and digestive diseases” at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Leuven. After his PhD, he did a short postdoctoral stay at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York.
João Sabino holds a basic-clinical research position at the Flemish Foundation for Scientific Research (FWO Vlaanderen). He is member of the Educational Committee and of the board of the Belgian IBD Research and Development (BIRD) group.
His main research interests are the role of dietary approach to treat intestinal inflammation, the role of dietary components in the development and resolution of intestinal inflammation, and the impact of undernutrition in the quality of life of patients with IBD.
Dr. Joan Somja, M.D., PhD
CHU de Liège
Ms. Elise Schoefs, MSc.
KU Leuven
Elise graduated in 2021 with a degree in Biomedical Sciences from the Catholic University of Leuven, specializing in Management and Communication. Later that year, she began a PhD in the research group of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, further developing her interest in patient preferences, which was also the focus of her master’s thesis. Her research, conducted in close collaboration with the Leuven IBD research group, focuses on shared decision making and preference elicitation methods in the field of inflammatory bowel disease, with the aim of improving their implementation in clinical practice. Elise is expected to defend her PhD in August 2026.
Mr. Geert Steurs, PhD
Pharma.be
Geert Steurs obtained a PhD in Economics at the Catholic University of Leuven after a Visiting Scholarship at the Nortwestern University in the US.
He started his career as an assistant professor at the Catholic University of Leuven. After 6 years he joined a newly established research-based consultancy firm, IDEA CONSULT. He was senior-manager in charge of the “competitiveness and innovation” business area. For 11 years now, he is Chief Economist and financial director for pharma.be, the association which represents the interests of about 130 innovative biopharmaceutical companies in Belgium. His main responsibilities are the management of the NIHDI medicines budget and helping to safeguard the strong economic footprint of the sector in Belgium.
Dr. Killian Troch, M.D.
CHU UCL Namur
Dr. Killian Troch is a young gastroenterologist who graduated from UCLouvain in 2024, where he trained under the supervision of Prof. Rahier and Prof. Dewit. He currently works at CHU UCL Namur across the Namur and Godinne sites. He contributed to the development of the IBD clinic in Namur while pursuing advanced training in Godinne in inflammatory bowel diseases with Prof. Rahier and in clinical nutrition with Dr. Druez. He plans to further develop his expertise through additional training abroad in the near future. Passionate about running, he is involved in the organization of innovative events to promote physical activity and raise awareness of IBD.
Dr. Marie Truyens, M.D., PhD
UZ Gent
Marie Truyens graduated from Ghent University in 2017 and completed her specialization in gastroenterology in 2025, after which she joined the IBD team at Ghent University Hospital. She obtained her PhD at Ghent University Hospital, focusing on the pathogenesis and management of fatigue in IBD.
She is currently completing an international clinical fellowship at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge University Hospitals, which will be finalized in June 2026. Marie combines clinical work with ongoing research on extra-intestinal manifestations of IBD, particularly fatigue. She obtained certification in intestinal ultrasound through the IBUS curriculum and is part of an IBUS-accredited training center at Ghent University Hospital. She is an active member of the ECCO CONFER initiative and the BIRD working group on Standard of Care in IBD and is involved in collaborative initiatives such as the BIRD–GIEQS partnership, contributing to the development of standardized care and training in IBD.
Prof. Dr. Bram Verstockt, M.D., PhD
UZ Leuven
Prof. Bram Verstockt is a principal investigator at KU Leuven and an IBD specialist at UZ Leuven, Belgium. He is actively involved in the multidisciplinary IBD clinic, where he leads the integration of intestinal ultrasound (IUS) into routine clinical practice.
His research focuses on non-invasive disease monitoring, particularly IUS, alongside the optimization of imaging modalities and the development of predictive and prognostic biomarkers to advance personalized medicine in IBD. He has a strong interest in unraveling disease heterogeneity, including perianal disease, intestinal fibrosis, and fatigue, using multi-omics approaches and organoid models.
He has held several international leadership roles, including chair of Young ECCO and chair of the IBUS Scientific Committee. He currently serves as chair of the Belgian IBD Biobank, vice-president of the European Microscopic Colitis Group, and board member of the ECCO Guideline Committee, the BIRD Scientific Committee, and the IBUS Collaboration Committee. He is an associate editor of the Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis and an active reviewer for leading journals, funding bodies, and international conferences. In 2025, he was awarded both the ECCO Young Investigator Award and the UEG Rising Star distinction.
Prof. Dr. Sophie Vieujean, M.D., PhD
Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc
Sophie Vieujean obtained her medical degree in 2014 and completed her fellowship in Gastroenterology in 2021 at the University of Liège, both with summa cum laude. In October 2018, she began her PhD on the role of epithelial cells and mesenchymal stem cells in intestinal fibrosis in Crohn’s disease, under the supervision of Professor Edouard Louis. She successfully defended her thesis in February 2022. Her research was supported by the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research (F.R.S.–FNRS) and the Belgian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research and Development Group (BIRD). Following her PhD, Professor Sophie Vieujean completed a seven-month clinical fellowship at the CHRU of Nancy, France, under the mentorship of Professor Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet. She then pursued a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, in the laboratory of Professor Arthur Kaser. She is currently working as a gastroenterologist at UCL Saint-Luc, in ongoing collaboration with the IHU Infiny Institute in Nancy, and serves as a lecturer at the University of Liège.
A member of the Scientific Committee of BIRD and of GETAID, as well as the national representative to ECCO, Sophie Vieujean is the author and co-author of numerous peer-reviewed publications in the field of inflammatory bowel disease, with articles published in leading journals including Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Gut, The Lancet Healthy Longevity, and the Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis.
Representative,
Medaxes