The 10th Scientific Meeting MolecularDiagnostics.be brought our community together in A Room with a Zoo (Antwerp) for a full day of scientific updates and discussion. The morning session featured keynote talks by Prof. Frank Emmert-Streib (digital twins & P4 medicine), Prof. Ellen Heitzer (urine cfDNA), Dr. Toon Janssen (NGS developments) and Dr. Liesbeth Demuyser (scientific communication).
A Diamond Sponsor Lecture by Dr. Geert Martens highlighted the readiness of ctDNA analysis for routine use.
In the afternoon, two parallel tracks ran simultaneously:
Hemato/Oncology
Talks covered the cost-effectiveness of ctDNA (Dr. Astrid Kramer), results from the Belgian BALLETT study (Dr. Brigitte Maes), and advances in precision diagnostics (Dr. Natalie Berghaus). Two short communications focused on Optical Genome Mapping (Dr. Jef Baelen) and tumor tracking via shallow WGS of cfDNA (Dr. Nele Vandenbussche). Additional insights were offered on MRD in hematology (Dr. Marleen Bakkus) and engineered T-cell therapies for AML (Dr. Koen Debackere).
Microbiology
The microbiology track addressed RSV epidemiology after Nirsevimab (Adrien Lajot), molecular typing of Sarcoptes scabiei (Dr. Sylvia Bruisten), rapid viral genome detection using hybrid capture and Flongle sequencing (Dr. Elke Wollants), and WGS of non-tuberculous Mycobacteria (Dr. Pieter Koopman & Prof. Jakko van Ingen). Further talks included outbreak analysis using WGS (Dr. Sam Van Goethem), Nanopore sequencing for P. aeruginosa outbreak investigation (Dr. Jozef Dingemans), and preparedness for H5N1 (Prof. Isabel Leroux-Roels).
The meeting concluded with a networking drink, celebrating almost two decade of scientific exchange within the Belgian molecular diagnostics community.
Thank you to all speakers, sponsors, and participants!
