Henning Schaefer

The Netherlands Cancer Institute

The Netherlands Cancer Institute (Het Nederlands Kanker Instituut, NKI) is an exciting and rewarding place to work. It is an internationally recognized center of scientific excellence in many key areas relating to cancer. The NKI also stands out as the only official Comprehensive Cancer Center in The Netherlands. The combination of a research institute and a dedicated cancer clinic (the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek hospital) under one roof facilitates the translation of basal research to clinical applications. It also ensures that our researchers are aware of the most urgent questions our oncologists come across in the clinic. The NKI was established in October 1913, making it one of the oldest cancer research centers in the world. Nowadays, our research institute accommodates approximately 650 scientists and scientific support personnel. The Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital has 185 medical specialists, 180 beds, an out-patients clinic that receives around 106,000 visits a year, 12 operating theaters and 11 irradiation units for radiotherapy. The many research divisions within our institute focus on fundamental, translational, and clinical research. At the moment, our main research themes are: • Molecular Oncology: how do tumors arise and develop, and how do cancer cells differ from healthy cells? • Cancer Immunology: how does our body's immune system work, and how can we exploit it to fight cancer? • Precision Medicine: each tumor has its own genetic makeup and characteristics. Which treatment is best for the specific tumor of individual patients? • Image Guided Interventions: how can we further improve imaging during surgery, radiotherapy, or the whole course of the cancer treatment, to better cure patients? • Survivorship: which factors determine the risk of developing cancer and how can we improve the quality of life of (former) cancer patients?