MANILA, Philippines — St. Luke’s Medical Center, in collaboration with the Germany-based International Centers for Precision OncologyFoundation (ICPO), recently hosted "Theranostics Day: Awareness & Exchange about New Precision Cancer Care" at the Henry Sy, Sr. Auditorium in St. Luke’s-Global City. This landmark event served as a global pilot program, designed as a template to be duplicated in future ICPO Theranostics Day events around the world.

Theranostics is a personalized medical approach that integrates diagnostic testing with targeted therapy to identify and treat disease at the molecular level. St. Luke’s holds the distinction of being the first and only ICPO Clinical Theranostics Center of Excellence in the Philippines, a status granted on May 15, 2025.

Reshaping Modern Medicine 

During the welcome remarks, Dr. Anthony Perez, St. Luke’s-Global City SVP and Medical Director, emphasized the transformative power of this approach. "Theranostics exemplifies the promise of personalized medicine by integrating molecular imaging with targeted therapy," said Dr. Perez. "It allows us not only to see disease with remarkable clarity but also to deliver treatment with precision and purpose".

Dr. Eduardo Erasto Ongkeko, Head of the St. Luke’s-Global City Department of Nuclear Medicine and Theranostics, further highlighted how the field is evolving. "This field is reshaping modern medicine by moving beyond the traditional 'one size fits all' approach," Dr. Ongkeko stated. "It is a true precision medicine approach where treatment is tailored specifically to the patient".

Actual patients who have benefitted from it shared their experience while specialists from various fields such as Medical Oncology, Hepatobiliary Surgery, Urology, Radiation Oncology, and Pathology discussed the value of multidisciplinary meetings and family conferences.

A Global Mission for Patient Benefit 

The event featured international insights from Karim Bouterfa, ICPO Senior Project Manager, who spoke on scaling global access to these life-saving treatments. "ICPO is supporting the new era of cancer care by scaling patient access to theranostics through an international network of accredited centers," Bouterfa noted. He shared that the Foundation’s guiding vision roughly translates to “The patient's benefit is the highest law.”

Dr. Patricia Bautista-Peñalosa, St. Luke’s-Global City Nuclear Medicine Training Officer and ICPO Center Leader, addressed the urgent need for wider awareness and accessibility. "We really have to get the word out there that there is a new diagnostic test and an effective therapy," she remarked. Dr. Bautista-Peñalosa also highlighted the Department's ongoing efforts to make advanced therapies, such as peptide receptor radionuclide therapy and PSMA radioligand therapy, accessible even to those who may face financial challenges.

Advocating for Healthcare Equality

The importance of equitable access was a central theme for guest speaker human rights lawyer and Akbayan Party List Representative Chel Diokno. "What is most important to me regarding this event is the equality in terms of access to affordable healthcare," Diokno stated. "I hope we can make these treatments available not just to the privileged, but to everyone afflicted with these illnesses." Mabini Mayor Noel Luistro declared that at the municipality level, mayors can help first and foremost through awareness campaigns. Subsequently, Pampanga Representative Anna York Bondoc-Sagum and Iloilo Representative Kathryn Fermin-Gorriceta, who are both physicians, agreed to communicate with other government agencies and create bills that will also facilitate prompt access. 

A Legacy of Innovation

St. Luke’s has been a pioneer of theranostics since 2018, marking several significant "firsts" for the Philippines:

• January 2018: The first in the country to offer Ga-68 DOTATATE and Ga-68 PSMA PET-CT scans.

• May 16, 2018: The first peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) performed in the country.

• June 15, 2018: The first PSMA radioligand therapy performed in the country.

• 2022: All three Philippine Society of Nuclear Medicine (PSNM)-accredited advanced theranosticians are St. Luke’s-affiliated.

• 2025: The first and only in the country to have a dosimetry software for theranostics.

• 2025: Became one of the Therapy Centers of the Belgium-based Oncidium Foundation, the first and only in the Philippines 

• May 15, 2025: The first and only ICPO Clinical Theranostics Center of Excellence in the country

The day concluded with a guided tour of the St. Luke's Theranostics Center, showcasing the multidisciplinary environment and state-of-the-art facilities that support precision cancer care.

For more information about Theranostics, contact the St. Luke’s Department of Nuclear Medicine and Theranostics at 8789-7700 ext. 1004/1152 (St. Luke’s-Global City) and 8723-0101 ext. 4151 (St. Luke’s-Quezon City). 

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