Jesper Frank Christensen, Assoc. Prof., PhD

Dr Jesper Frank Christensen, PhD is Senior Researcher at the Digestive Disease Center, 
Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, and an Associate Professor in Exercise as Medicine 
with the University of Southern Denmark. Over the last decade, Dr. Christensen has led a 
range of exercise-trials in testicular, prostate, colorectal, and gastro-oesophageal cancer 
with a translational focus to elucidate the biological mechanisms, clinical effects and 
practice-based implications of exercise training in the oncology setting.

His talk is about the pleotropic physiological response, including immune cell function and concentration, to physical exercise training and its potential 
for optimizing cancer treatment tolerability and efficacy.

Donald Mabbott, PhD, C. Psych

Dr. Mabbott is Head of Neurosciences and Mental Health Program and Senior Scientist 
within the Research Institute at SickKids and a Professor in the Department of 
Psychology at the University of Toronto. Dr. Mabbott received his PhD in developmental 
psychology at the University of Alberta in 1998 and then completed a post-doctoral 
fellowship in paediatric neuropsychology at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). His 
research focuses on harnessing endogenous brain plasticity for cognitive recovery.

His talk is about the role of physical exercise for cognitive recovery and brain repair in survivors of paediatric brain tumours.

Sabine Kesting, Dr. rer. medic./PhD

Dr. Kesting is a postdoctoral researcher at the Technical University of Munich (Germany) with over 10 year of experience in Pediatric Exercise Oncology with the overall aim to understand the beneficial effects of exercise interventions during and following treatment and to reduce disease- and treatment-related sequelae associated with physical inactivity.She is an elected steering group member of the Network ActiveOncoKids.

Her talk is a description and discussion of challenges and opportunities regarding exercise interventions in patients recently diagnosed with childhood cancer.

Amanda Wurz, PhD Assistant Professor

Amanda is a health behaviour change researcher focused on enhancing wellness and quality of life through physical activity. Her research program informs opportunities for individuals affected by illness, disability, and chronic disease, with a primary focus on young people affected by cancer. She led the development of movement guidelines for children and adolescents affected by cancer (i.e., the iPOEG) and has experience in a variety of research approaches and methods. As someone who loves learning herself, Amanda is also passionate about teaching - whether in the classroom or the community.

In her talk she adresses the role of qualified exercise professionals (QEPs) and training to support physical activity delivery in pediatric oncology.

Dr. Maxime Caru, PhD, PhD

Dr. Caru is a postdoctoral researcher at the Pennsylvania State College of Medicine. In 
2020, he completed two Ph.Ds, one in exercise physiology and one in psychology. Dr. 
Caru’s primary research interests focus on the effects of exercise, cardiorespiratory 
fitness, and health behavior changes on physiological and psychological outcomes in 
children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer and survivors. He is also interested 
in the long-term adverse effects of cancer treatments.

In his talk he will give an overview of the cardiorespiratory fitness state of childhood 
cancer patients and its long-term impact on survivors. 

Christina Schindera, MD PhD

Christina Schindera is a pediatric hematologist and oncologist at the University Children’s Hospital in Basel, Switzerland. In 2020, she received her PhD on risk factors and early detection of cardiovascular and pulmonary disease after childhood cancer from the University of Bern. Her talk will give insights into the burden of cardiovascular disease in childhood cancer survivors, its prevention and management during follow-up care.

In her talk, she will focus on the burden of cardiovascular disease in childhood cancer survivors, its prevention and management.

Martin Kaj Friedh, PhD

Martin Kaj Friedh  is an exercise physiologist with a PhD in pediatric exercise oncology from Copenhagen University Hospital.

His talk is about the effects of peer involvement in physical activities during childhood cancer treatment. The talk will focus on percieved experiences of the children and the effects of the exercise program on cardiorespiratory fitness, muscle strength and physical performance.