[BBC] POSTDOC IN COMPUTATIONAL CANCER BIOLOGY, AMSTERDAM

[l.wessels at nki.nl]

POSTDOC IN COMPUTATIONAL CANCER BIOLOGY

PREDICTING CHEMOTHERAPY RESPONSE IN LUMINAL BREAST CANCER

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is widely used in all subtypes of breast cancers. However, only a small subset (~10%) of patients with luminal breast cancer achieve pathological complete response. We previously identified genes of which expression levels are associated to chemotherapy resistance. In this project, we aim to i) better understand the molecular alterations of luminal breast cancers (e.g. role of the genes identified, association with BRCAness); ii) develop practical routine predictive tests to tailor neoadjuvant chemotherapy for luminal breast cancer. To do that, we will leverage in-house (DNA and RNA sequencing data from 500 biopsies) and published data (METABRIC, TCGA) on primary luminal breast cancer together with a large collection of cell lines available via our collaboration with the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the Cancer Systems Biology Centre at NKI. The successful candidate will be in charge of building computational models with the aim of delivering new biomarkers used for the clinical treatment of luminal breast cancer.

CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS –EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

We need an ambitious, motivated and skilled computational biologist to run this project:
- Highly motivated postdoc or PhD candidate
- Holding a degree in bioinformatics or computer science
- Experienced in cancer biology and clinical applications
- Proficient in common bioinformatics scripting and programming languages (e.g. R, python)
- Experienced in analysing high-throughput genomic data (e.g. DNA and RNA sequencing)
- Able to communicate effectively with scientists from various backgrounds-
- Speaking and writing English fluently

CONTACT DETAILS

Please contact Lodewyk Wessels, tel. +31 20 512 7987 or e-mail: l.wessels at nki.nl<mailto:l.wessels at nki.nl>. When applying please ensure you include a CV, list of publications and the names and addresses of at least two persons that can be approached to obtain further information. Also see ccb.nki.nl<http://ccb.nki.nl/>for further information.

CLOSING DATE: 1 FEBRUARY 2014