Bernd Kasper

Prof. Bernd Kasper studied Medicine at the University of Heidelberg and received his MD degree from Heidelberg University in 2000. In 2001, he finalized his thesis at the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) in Heidelberg, dealing with new treatment strategies for chronic myelogenous leukemia patients using the tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib. To deepen his training, he stayed in London (Imperial College School of Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Department of Hematology), Brussels (Jules Bordet Institute, Medical Oncology Clinic) and South Kerala, India (scholarship of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst DAAD). In 2007/2008, he specialized in Internal Medicine and Medical Hematology/Oncology at the Department of Internal Medicine V at the University of Heidelberg. Currently, he works at the Sarcoma Unit of the Interdisciplinary Tumor Center Mannheim (ITM) at the Mannheim University Medical Center, University of Heidelberg. He has been chair of the ITM since 2011. Prof. Kasper has a life-time professional dedication to patient care and research in soft tissue sarcomas (STS), desmoid-type fibromatosis (DF) and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). His clinical practice focuses exclusively on these disease entities. He is head of the study center of the German Interdisciplinary Sarcoma Group (GISG) and is active in national and international study groups (AIO, EORTC). He is the Principal Investigator of several national and international trials on STS, DF and GIST. Currently, he serves as the Secretary of the EORTC Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma Group (STBSG) and is member of the German Cancer Society (DKG), DGHO, GISG, European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS). Prof. Kasper has authored around 100 scientific publications. He is dedicated as board member to patient organizations dealing with STS, DF and GIST on the national and international level such as SPAEN or DTRF.