Sandra Eloranta

Principal Researcher | Docent
Visiting address: ,
Postal address: K2 Medicin, Solna, K2 KEP Ekström Smedby K Eloranta S, 171 77 Stockholm
Part of:

About me

  • I am a mathematical statistician and /Docent/ in clinical epidemiology with more than 15 years’ experience of population-based cancer research. My main methodological interests are in statistical and epidemiological methods used for investigating population-based cancer patient survival and cancer survivorship issues, specifically in lymphoma. In my role as principal researcher I am also team leader for a group of Phd students and statisticians within the cancer epidemiology group that is based at the Division of Clinical Epidemiology [1], Department of Medicine, Solna.
    At present I am supervising 5 PhD students who work with various projects related to lymphoma survival, late effects after lymphoma treatment,
    childbearing after a diagnosis or lymphoma and cancer risk/prognosis after organ transplantation. I am also a keen teacher and frequent lecturer at the clinical research schools hosted by the Division of Clinical Epidemiology.
    In 2023-2024 I lead the implementation of Clinicum [2], which aims is to develop a new organization at KI together with the major health care
    providers in Region Stockholm. This work involves developing structures for collaboration and for access to support in epidemiology, biostatistics,
    bioinformatics and other research methodologies, as well as the development of processes for accessing health data from the region. The target group for Clinicum is the researchers and functions that use health and medical care data in research at KI and/or within the Stockholm Region.

    Docent (Associate professor), Clinical Epidemiology (2020)
    PhD Medical Science, Karolinska Institutet (2013).
    Title of Thesis:/ Development and application of statistical methods for
    population-based cancer patient. (Supervisor: Prof Paul Dickman).
    MSc Mathematics, Uppsala University (2006).

    [1] https://ki.se/en/meds/kep-cancer-epidemiology
    [2] https://ki.se/clinicum

Research

  • My research on childbearing after treatment with immuno-chemotherapy for aggressive lymphoma is supported by the Swedish Cancer Society, and Karolinska Institutets stiftelser.

    My research team includes:
    Joshua Entrop, PhD student, epidemiologist
    Fanny Bergström, Mathematical statistician
    Ida Hed Myrberg, Biostatistician
    Stefanie Antonilli, Biostatistician
    Johan Zetterqvist, Biostatistician
    Magnus Boman, Affiliated to research

Teaching

  • *PhD supervision*
    Joshua Entrop has a Master degree in public health and studies childbearing patterns after modern-day intensive immunochemotherapy in young
    Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors and performs studies in collaboration with the epidemiology working group of the Nordic lymphoma group [2]. His project is supported by the Swedish Cancer Society and the Nordic Cancer.

    Joel Joelsson is an MD studying survival and surviorship issues among patients with Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma (DLBCL). Specifically Joel's
    studies address the risk for secondary solid tumours and treatment-related myeloid neoplasms after treatment for Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma.

    Rasmus Rask Kragh Jørgensen is a mathematician based at Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark, and is performing a project on prognostic modelling of prognosis after both Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.

    *Past PhD students*
    Sara Harrysson is an MD with a specific interest in survival, relapse and cardiac events after a diagnosis of aggressive B-cell lymphoma. Her research focus is specifically to investigate treatment outcome and predictors in relapsed and treatment-refractory Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma by clinical, demographic and biological characteristics, as well as the incidence, characteristics and timing of cardiovascular events (particularly acute
    coronary syndrome) among anthracycline-treated patients. Sara defended her thesis: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma : population-based studies of relapse and cardiac complications in March 2023.

    Henrik Benoni is an MD investigating cancer risk and prognosis following solid organ transplantation. His research aims to identify determinants of cancer risk among kidney transplant recipients and to estimate absolute risks and timing of increased cancer risks in a Nordic cohort of kidney transplant recipients. His PhD studies also look into if solid organ transplant recipients have a worse cancer prognosis than the general cancer population (unexposed to organ transplantation). Henrik defended his thesis: Cancer after solid organ transplantation – incidence, risk factors, and survival in December 2022.

    Sara Ekberg has a background in mathematical statistics and studied patterns and trends in the incidence, prevalence and survival as
    well as survivorship issues among patients diagnosed with the most common non-hodgkin lymphoma subtypes in Sweden, with a focus on Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma. Her studies originated in data from the Swedish lymphoma register and were conducted in collaboration with researchers from the Swedish Lymphoma Group. Sara defended her thesis: Long-term survival and survivorship in non-Hodgkin Lymphoma patients in Sweden in January 2021.

    Elsa Brånvall is a specialist in hematology and internal medicine studied the role of medication history in the etiology and prognosis of
    lymphoma subtypes. Specifically her studies investigated if the use of aspirin or NSAIDs or cholesterol-lowering medications (such as statins)
    decreased the risk of developing lymphoma, and if they were associated with an improved the prognosis of lymphoma. Elsa defended her thesis: Common medications in the risk and prognosis of lymphoid neoplasms and epidemiology of primary CNS lymphoma in December 2020.

    Caroline Weibull is a mathematical statistician with a research focus on survivorship issues after Hodgkin lymphoma. The specific aims were to
    describe trends in childbearing by clinical characteristics and to investigate the association between pregnancy and risk for relapse among
    women in remission following a diagnosis of Hodgkin lymphoma. Her studies also aimed to shed light on if the decline in treatment-related mortality of diseases of the circulatory system is associated with less toxic treatments or improved follow-up and care. Her thesis work included methodological development as well as applied statistical work. Caroline defended her thesis: Survivorship in Hodgkin Lymphoma: childbearing and treatment-related disease in November 2018.

    Lingjing Chen has a background in medicine and public health and completed her thesis, entitled: Rectal cancer surviorship: work loss and
    long-term morbidity in December 2017.

    *Teaching merits*
    I am a specialist in statistical methods for competing risks and frequently invited to give presentations on this topic. I have for example been invited
    to give lectures and courses aimed towards both statisticians and non-statisticians at, for example, the University of Lund (Sweden), the
    University of Umeå (Sweden), The Arctic University of Tromsö (Norway), the Regional Cancer Center in Stockholm, the annual meeting of the Network of Epidemiology and Nutrition, as well as the Summer School on Modern Methods in Biostatistics and Epidemiology (Italy) organized jointly by Harvard School of Public Health, University of Milano-Bicocca and Karolinska Institutet.
    I also teach the fundamental principles of good research documentation practise in medical research. These lectures typically cover a wide range of
    topics related to data management
  • from practical issues related to data collection, reproducible research processes, archiving, to theoretical
    lectures on ethical considerations and Swedish laws that govern epidemiological research. I was also the first author of a book chapter on
    this topic published by Läkartidningen in 2015 (Verktyg för klinisk forskning [2]).

    [1] http://www.nordic-lymphoma.org/
    [2] http://www.lakartidningen.se/Samlingssidor/Serie-Verktyg-for-klinisk-forskning/

Articles

All other publications

Grants

Employments

  • Principal Researcher, Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, 2022-

Degrees and Education

  • Docent, Karolinska Institutet, 2020
  • Degree Of Doctor Of Philosophy, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, 2013

Leadership and responsibility assignments

  • Project leader, Clinicum Implementation Project, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institute, 2023-
  • Research team leader, Team Sandra Eloranta, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institute, 2022-

Supervisor

  • Ida Hed Myrberg, 2023
  • Ida Hed Myrberg, 2023
  • Joshua Entrop, Childbearing after modern-day intensive immunochemotherapy in young Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors, https://ki.se/en/people/joshua-entrop, 2020
  • Caroline Weibull, Survivorship in Hodgkin lymphoma : childbearing and treatment-related disease, https://openarchive.ki.se/xmlui/handle/10616/46467, 2014
  • Joelsson Joel, Second malignancies after non-Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis and early identification of patients with poor outcomes

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