Prof. Anna Szumera-Ciećkiewicz, MD, PhD

Anna is a pathology expert and researcher with extensive experience in oncological diagnostics and translational cancer research. As Head of the Biobank and Director’s Representative for Biobanking at the Maria Skłodowska-Curie National Research Institute of Oncology, she contributes to the development of high-quality biological resources for clinical and research applications. Her current areas of research include molecular pathology, precision oncology, soft tissue and bone sarcomas, rare cancers, biomarker discovery, and biospecimen quality management. She is particularly interested in the integration of high-quality biological resources and molecular data to support translational cancer research and personalized medicine. Since June 2025, she has also served as Editor-in-Chief of the Polish Journal of Pathology.

Prof. Anna Szumera-Ciećkiewicz

is supervising

testimonial

SPACE-MEL is more than a research project. It is a European investment in knowledge, innovation, and the next generation of researchers, bringing us closer to more effective and personalized melanoma treatment.

Publications

1: Krawczyk M, Fidyt K, Fernandez-Fuentes N, Winiarski T, Pepek M, Bousquets-Muñoz P, Puente XS, Gutiérrez-Fernández A, Davis J, Owczarek D, Graczyk-JarzynkaA, Sanz-Galarreta P, Menendez P, Szumera-Ciećkiewicz A, Benard E, Wälchli S,Thomas-Tikhonenko A, Pérez-García VM, Galán-Gómez V, Escudero López A, Delgado EI, Minguillón J, Pérez-Martínez A, Winiarska M. Tisa-cel and axi-cel CAR structure influences the development of resistance to CD19-CAR-T therapy. Leukemia. 2026 Aug 27. doi: 10.1038/s41375-026-03081-3. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 42660975.

 

2: Bonetti A, Le VL, Carrero ZI, Wolf F, Gustav M, Lam SW, Vanhersecke L, Sobczuk P, Le Loarer F, Lenarcik M, Rutkowski P, van Sabben JM, Steeghs N, Van Boven HH, Machado I, Bagué S, Navarro S, Medina-Ceballos E, Agra-Pujol C, Giner F, Tapia G, Hernández-Gallego A, Civantos-Jubera G, Cuatrecasas M, Lopez-Prades S, Perret R, Soubeyran I, Khalifa E, Blouin L, Wardelmann E, Meurgey A, Collini P, Voloshin A, Yatabe Y, Hirano H, Gronchi A, Nishida T, Bouche O, Emile JF, Ngo C, Hohenberger P, Cotarelo C, Jakob J, Bovee JVMG, Gelderblom H, Szumera-Ciećkiewicz A, Jean-Denis M, Bollard J, Lassau N, Le Cesne A, Blay JY, Italiano A, Crombe A, Coindre JM, Kather JN. Deep Learning Predicts Mutations and Outcomes in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors. Cancer Res. 2026 Aug 14;86(16):4175-4186. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-26-0132. PMID: 42258704; PMCID: PMC13473859.

 

3: Szumera-Ciećkiewicz A, Donizy P, Kervarrec T, Skrzyński W, Alos L, Castrejon- De-Anta N, Ugolini F, Mizera J, Mihic-Probst D, Cook MG, Schilling B, Rutkowski P, Eggermont AMM, Mandalà M, Massi D; EORTC Melanoma Group. An updated European organization for research and treatment of cancer (EORTC) protocol for pathological evaluation of sentinel lymph nodes for merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). Eur J Cancer. 2026 Mar 26;237:116587. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2026.116587. Epub 2026 Feb 17. PMID: 41724115.

 

4: Chłopek M, Lasota J, Singh O, Blakely AM, Glod J, Ylaya K, Kaczorowski M, Klubíčková N, Szumera-Ciećkiewicz A, Rutkowski P, Michal M, Abdullaev Z, Aldape KD, Miettinen M. DNA Methylation Profiling Separates SDH-Deficient GISTs From KIT-PDGFRA-Driven GISTs and Identifies Predictive Biomarkers for Targeted Therapy. Am J Surg Pathol. 2025 Nov 1;49(11):1105-1113. doi: 10.1097/PAS.0000000000002444. Epub 2025 Jul 9. PMID: 40629847.

 

5: Czarnecka AM, Ostaszewski K, Błoński P, Szumera-Ciećkiewicz A, Kozak K, Placzke J, Borkowska A, Terlecka A, Rogala P, Świtaj T, Sałamacha M, Mitręga- Korab B, Krotewicz M, Dudzisz-Śledź M, Rutkowski P. Preoperative-postoperative immunotherapy as treatment of borderline resectable and oligoprogressive stage III B-D and IV melanoma. Eur J Surg Oncol. 2024 Jul;50(7):108382. doi: 10.1016/j.ejso.2024.108382. Epub 2024 May 14. PMID: 38763112.