Linda Douw

Amsterdam UMC

In short, Linda Douw's research entails the following:

Predicting functional and cognitive decline after glioma surgery (PREDICT)

The PREDICT project aims to forecast postoperative decline in glioma patients using clinical and advanced ‘connectome’ or brain network-based predictors. We will first train a classifier for decline using only demographic and generic computational modeling, and then personalize this model with advanced connectome data. Finally, we will validate the model in a new patient cohort.

This project pivotally uses concepts from "cancer neuroscience," exploring the interaction between tumors and the brain in order to forecast relevant clinical outcomes. It uniquely combines generative computational modeling with machine learning to potentially improve oncological care. Ultimately, the project aims at reducing uncertainty for patients facing surgery and their healthcare professionals, and potentially enabling personalized (p)rehabilitation strategies to enhance brain resilience in those at risk of decline.

The PREDICT team consists of a neurosurgeon with a keen interest in optimizing patient outcomes through advanced analyses (prof. Philip De Witt Hamer), a physicist/MD who has ample expertise in computational modeling (dr. Prejaas Tewarie), a technical physician with lots of AI know-how (dr. Roelant Eijgelaar), and a neuropsychologist/multiscale network neuroscientist with experience in combining imaging and cognition in these patients (dr. Linda Douw).