"Even back in school, my favorite subject was biology. It's fascinating to see how cells work. Cells are like tiny chemical factories, in which everything usually balanced perfectly. But many cancer cells seem to have too many or too few chromosomes. If this were to happen to regular cells, they would grow very slowly and barely divide. Tumor cells also start by slowing their growth and division. I made cells divide incorrectly in the lab, so they would end up with an abnormal chromosome count, after which I tracked them for about eight months. I saw under the microscope that they increased the speed at which they grew. It takes a lot of energy to produce proteins. I suspect that the tumor cells have internally adapted to restore balance in this chaos. They have learned to cope with stress. Cells are just like people in that regard. Fortunately, I didn’t experience much stress during my PhD research. I love sports. Two years ago, I participated in the Alpe d'HuZes charity event. I cycled to the top of the mountain five times to raise money for cancer research, which also funded my own. The mood on the mountain was heavy, but hopeful. It was very special to experience that."
Dorine Hintzen will defend her thesis on June 20.
This research was financially supported by a Young Investigators Grant from KWF Dutch Cancer Society.
prof. dr. René H. Medema
Jonne A. Raaijmakers