Specialization
- Cancer metabolism
Focus of research
Our Head and neck cancer biology & immunology (HNCBI) research group at the Department of Otolaryngology-head and neck surgery focuses on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and the precancerous lesions from which these cancers arise with the ultimate aim to translate research findings to the clinic and improve diagnosis, treatment and surveillance. The major research themes are
- oncogenesis and genomics
- molecular diagnosis and early detection
- tumor-stroma interaction
- cancer metabolism
- development and evaluation of novel treatments
I started my PhD project in 2024 at the Head and Neck Cancer Biology & Immunology (HNCBI) research group in the Department of Otolaryngology-head and neck surgery in collaboration with the Systems Biology group at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Prior to my PhD, I completed the master Biomedical Engineering at the University of Twente, with the specialization Bioengineering Technologies. For this study program, I performed two research internships. The first was in the group of C. Wyatt Shields IV at the University of Colorado Boulder (USA). Here I worked on synthesizing and characterizing a hydrogel and microparticle drug delivery system for melanoma treatment and tumor stroma reduction. My final internship was in the group of Jai Prakash at the University of Twente, in which I developed an in vitro melanoma 3D skin model.
My research at the HNCBI group and Systems Biology lab is focused on the metabolic characterization of head and neck cancer. Our aim is to better understand the mechanisms underlying reprogrammed metabolism in head and neck cancer. One project focuses on the increased lactate production that cannot be explained by glucose only, and depends on other carbon sources. This may be exploited as target for diagnosis and treatment. The observed altered metabolism is further investigated in cell line-restricted metabolic models and mechanistically tested by functional studies using siRNA and CRISPR methods. Given the molecular and biological heterogeneity of HNSCC, we aim to characterize the metabolic phenotype of the distinct subclasses of HNSCC. Furthermore, we also plan perform this characterization for precancerous cell lines. Some of the analytical techniques I use to study HNSCC metabolism are metabolite measurements (HPLC, enzymatic assays, GC-MS) and oxygen consumption measurements.