The mission of my research is to use metabolic imaging in the diagnosis and treatment planning of metabolic disorders and cancer. I believe that direct measurement of tissue metabolism in the patient will lead to better understanding of the disease in the individual patient and can therefore faster translate to a change in diagnosis and consequently treatment, to better help the patient. I strive to invent and make available advanced metabolic imaging methods to aid diagnosis and treatment of the most vulnerable group of patients; children with metabolic diseases and solid tumours, who may greatly benefit from non-invasive metabolic characterisation of their disease.

I have a background in Biomedical Engineering and obtained my PhD in biomedicine on the topic of magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) of human brain tumours at the Radboud University Nijmegen-Medical Centre. After a short post-doc position at the University Medical Centre Utrecht (UMCU) (Marina van Damma Grant), I obtained the Niels Stensen fellowship which enabled me to work as a postdoc to learn about pre-clinical research in oncology in the In-vivo Cellular and Molecular Imaging Center (ICMIC) from the department of radiology in the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, (Baltimore, USA) in 2011. I continued my post-doctoral research on advanced metabolic imaging methods at high magnetic field for human applications in the brain and body in the Leiden University Medical Centre and UMCU in 2012, and since 2019 as Associate Professor in the high field MR research group in the UCMU. Being part of this group, I have access to a large multidisciplinary team of experts on MRI and unique MRI equipment (7 Tesla MR system, MetaScanner). I guide and supervise master and PhD students in projects that make use of this equipment to study neurological diseases, metabolic diseases and cancer both in adults and children.

Eurostars VM Biopsy! (2019) "Rapid virtual metabolic biopsy for neuroscience and clinical diagnosis"

other partners:MR Shim GmbH, Multiwave Technologies SA, Wavetronica

WKZ Research fund 'Non-invasive characterization of paediatric brain tumours using metabolic imaging at high magnetic field' (2018)

In collaboration with dr. M.H. Lequin, Paediatric (Neuro)Radiologist, Department of Radiology, WKZ/UMCU, dr. J.M. de Bont, Paediatric Neurologist, Department of Neurology, WKZ, dr. S.L.A. Plasschaert, Paediatric Oncologist, PMC

Eurostars IMAGINE! (2018) 'Real time Intraoperative Head-optimised Magnetic Resonance Imaging (hiMRI) forbrain surgery'

Other partners: MRCoils, Multiwave Technologies SA, Tesla Engineering Ltd, Princes Maxima Center.

Alpe d'Huzes grant 'Saving breast cancer patients from ineffective cytotoxic treatment' (2014)
Other applicants: Prof. dr. M.A.A.J. van den Bosch (department of Radiology UMCU), Prof. dr. H.W.M. van Laarhoven (department of Oncology AMC)

VENI (NWO) 'Towards non-invasive metabolic imaging of breast cancer staging at 7 Tesla to guide treatments' (2013)
Momenteel zijn er nauwelijks technieken om effecten van chemotherapie direct in de patiënt te kunnen meten. De onderzoekers gaan impact van therapie bestuderen met Magnetische Resonantie Spectroscopie, zodat vroegtijdig, zonder operaties, de therapie op individuele basis gestuurd kan worden.

Marina van Damme grant (2010)
This award has been made possible by a donation from Mrs dr.ir. Marina van Damme (1953). She is a Delft engineering graduate and the first female to gain a PhD at the University of Twente. She has had a distinguished career in science and industry. Marina van Damme wants to enable young female engineering graduates of TU/e to develop and boost their job and career prospects.

Niels Stensen Fellowship 'Monitoring of response to breast cancer therapy by 31P Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy' (2010)

Since the 1960s, the Niels Stensen Fellowship has been awarded annually to outstanding researchers who recently received their PhD to enable them to gain research experience at a top university or institute abroad.The aim of the Niels Stensen Fellowship is to encourage these talented young researchers by means of facilitating their academic research abroad. The Niels Stensen Fellowship Committee would like to be introduced to candidates who have shown academic excellence as well as social commitment. The fellowship is open to all academic disciplines