Post-doctoral position in brain cancer research

Closing date: April 15

Post-doctoral position in brain cancer research

Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive and lethal types of brain tumours. Radiotherapy remains a cornerstone of treatment; however, its effectiveness is often limited by the risk of damaging the surrounding healthy brain tissue.

Within the NuCapCure project, we are developing innovative compounds designed to exploit the tumour’s own biosynthetic machinery. These agents effectively turn cancer cells into intracellular “mini-chemistry laboratories,” forcing them to produce therapeutic drugs from within. The compounds are then further activated by proton therapy, an advanced and highly precise form of radiotherapy.

The NuCapCure agents will be validated and optimised using 2D and 3D glioblastoma cell culture models, after which the most promising candidates will be selected for in vivo evaluation. This approach has the potential to selectively target tumour cells while minimising damage to surrounding healthy brain tissue.

The project offers a highly multidisciplinary research environment, including physics, chemistry and cancer biology. The appointed post-doctoral researcher will play a central role in validating selected compounds in vivo, with a particular focus on assessing therapeutic responses in glioblastoma models.

Working environment

The University of Groningen and the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) provide an excellent working environment for high-quality biomedical research and scientific training. This post-doctoral position is based in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the UMCG and is embedded within the Department of Biomedical Sciences. The position is supervised by Dr. Lara Barazzuol and is part of an international project, NuCapCure, funded by the European Innovation Council (EIC).

Dr. Barazzuol’s research group investigates the side effects of cancer treatments and aims to widen the therapeutic window of proton therapy for brain and central nervous system (CNS) tumours. The team does so by integrating cutting-edge radiotherapy technologies with molecular targeting strategies. The goal is to translate these discoveries into improved clinical applications.

What do we need

We are looking for an excellent and highly motivated post-doctoral candidate with strong laboratory skills, preferably with a background in brain tumour biology, neuroscience, in vivo modelling, or related fields.