Introducing Maartje Leemans – Central Coordinator ‘Ren voor de Regio’
I studied Biomedical Engineering at the University of Twente. After finishing my studies, I did a PhD at the Head and Neck Oncology and Surgery department at the Netherlands Cancer Institute. My PhD included clinical and technical research projects focused on developing and evaluating medical products for patients after treatment of laryngeal cancer.
Since August 2023, I have started at Cancer Center Amsterdam as the central coordinator for the ‘Ren voor de Regio’ project. This KWF-funded project aims to establish a regional research infrastructure to facilitate and accelerate oncology research within the Noord-Holland and Flevoland region.
Collaborations on clinical trials and joint biobanking within the region could bring innovative treatments (in a study context) to cancer patients and advance biological insights into the disease.
For more information, contact Maartje Leemans, check out Regionaal netwerk voor kankeronderzoek - REN voor de regio | KWF, or Cancer Center Amsterdam’s Annual Review 2022.
Introducing Jolieke Weijmer – Staff member Communication and Administration
In early 2023, I graduated from the University of Amsterdam with a bachelor's degree in Communication Science. During this time, I was also working at a company where, over the span of three years, I progressed from being a customer service representative to a marketing intern, and on to Financial, Partner and Customer Service Professional. That was not an existing position but one tailored to my skills and reflecting my versatility as a “jack of all trades” within the organization.
My position at Cancer Center Amsterdam is Communication and Administration.
Administrative tasks come easily to me; I like orderliness and rules. My challenge will be to support and improve internal and external communication at Cancer Center Amsterdam. I am genuinely excited to formulate and execute plans that will bring us closer to achieving this ambitious goal.
You can reach me by mail, and don’t forget to inform me about your milestones in research and care in support of Cancer Center Amsterdam outreach!
Introducing Aniek Willems – Project Secretary for the project OncoNext
I graduated in Healthcare Policy, Innovation and Management at Maastricht University, where I also started my career in Maastricht University Medical Center+ (MUMC+) at OncoZON, the oncological network of the southern part of the Netherlands.
After having worked for the MUMC+ for two years, I embarked on a trip around the world which was cut short by the COVID pandemic.
I moved to Amsterdam after my return to the Netherlands. Here, I started working as a staff consultant in the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (AvL) hospital. I carried out assignments for the radiotherapy department and the Tumor Working Groups, urological cancers in particular.
In addition, I was involved in the Prostate Cancer Network Netherlands, the establishment of various networks (including OncoNoVo+) and the collaboration between Amsterdam UMC – Cancer Center Amsterdam and AvL.
After three years, it was time for a new challenge which I found at OncoNext. As of October 2023, I started as Project Secretary for the project OncoNext. The mission of OncoNext is better oncological care for all patients with cancer through unambiguous, structured registration of data and making that care information available. In short: data availability throughout the entire oncology care process.
Next year, together with Eefje van Kessel and others, I will take up the challenge to come up with a national implementation plan and realize commitment and funding for it.
If you want to know more about me, the many hobbies I have, or the project, please feel free to send me a message! I look forward to getting to know everyone and working together.
A warm welcome from Amsterdam UMC - Cancer Center Amsterdam to our new team members. We're excited to have you on board. Let's work together for a brighter future in cancer research and care!
This article was created for Cancer Center Amsterdam.
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