The Netherlands Cancer Institute shared on LinkedIn:
“Medical oncologist Marleen Kok appointed full professor.
A well-deserved new chapter for our colleague Marleen Kok, who is now a professor by special appointment in medical oncology, with a special focus on breast cancer and immunotherapy at Leiden University Medical Center/Universiteit Leiden. Congratulations!
Her research focuses on the interactions between the immune system and breast cancer with the ultimate goal to improve breast cancer treatment and immunotherapy in particular.
Marleen: ‘Patients with breast tumors that harbor immune cells usually have a better prognosis. We study whether they can be treated without chemotherapy or whether they are good candidates for immunotherapy.’
‘Better understanding of the interactions between immune cells and cancer cells could allow more personalized treatment to improve outcomes and reduce side effects.
We know that the amount of immune cells is important, but the exact type, activation status and spatial localization of these cells in relation to breast cancer cells are probably also crucial.
Our ambition is to work towards incorporating information on these tumor-associated immune cells into breast cancer treatment guidelines.’
This new chair creates opportunities to boost translational research at the NKI and LUMC by bringing findings from the lab to the clinic and letting clinical observation guide future fundamental research.
‘I’m honored by this appointment and excited about the opportunity to build on existing partnerships, create new collaborations, and inspire young researchers, in particular clinician-scientists.’
We are grateful to the Nijbakker Morra Stichting (Foundation), whose support was instrumental in the establishment of this chair.
This foundation made a donation to support Marleen’s research from a kind bequest of Mr. Grundmann.
The bequest was made in memory of his wife, who died because of breast cancer.”
Other articles featuring Marleen Kok on OncoDaily.
