Education / Shine like a Diamond

In 2014, the Oncology Graduate School Amsterdam (OOA) launched the ‘Diamond Program’, an innovative program to support highly talented Master students in pursuing a doctorate degree. The premise of this NWO-funded program (€ 800 000) was based on the American graduate school model in which PhD candidates freely choose which group and research suits them best, rather than applying for an advertised PhD position.

From 31 applications to the program, eight qualified students in the final stages of their MSc programs were offered the opportunity to meet principal investigators (PIs) affiliated with Cancer Center Amsterdam or Netherlands Cancer Institute during a ‘speed-dating’ style event. Next, the students chose three labs to perform rotations – similar to the graduate school system in the USA but with a duration of two weeks per rotation.

In the final stage of the selection process, research proposals were drafted by the students in collaboration with their selected PIs. Dr. Esther Ruhé, project manager of the Diamond Program: “The students essentially wrote their own PhD research projects while attending the OOA grant-writing workshop. Based on evaluation of these proposals by an external committee involving highly-regarded researchers, the final four Diamond Program PhD students were chosen.”

Initially, I was skeptical whether MSc students would have sufficient insights to write their own PhD trajectories, but - with support from their PIs - all succeeded in crafting high-quality proposals.

Prof. Hein te Riele,

Member Executive Board - Oncology Graduate School Amsterdam.

Making excellence shine

“It has been an incredible journey,” Esther says. “The four Diamond PhD candidates surpassed all expectations, by far.”

The output?

• 43 peer reviewed publications, including original scientific articles in high-profile journals such as Nature and Blood, and reviews in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology and Cell Stem Cell
• Several editorial comments highlighting the importance of these cancer research findings
• Four PhD theses, of which one with the distinction cum laude
• Selected and invited to international conferences
• Prestigious international awards
• A wealth of new international collaborations to fuel even more discoveries

“All of this is evidence that the Diamond Program really proved its value and also jumpstarted the careers of the PhD candidates,” says Esther. “All our Diamond students have successfully continued their careers with positions in cancer research or medicine.”

The Diamond Program succeeded in attracting top research talents and provided optimal conditions for these gifted students to reach their true potential.

Dr. Marcel Spaargaren,

Member Executive Board – Oncology Graduate School Amsterdam.

A bright future for the Diamond Program?

From the beginning, NWO made it clear that continuation of support for programs like the Diamond Program must be funded by the graduate schools or other sources.

“We have proven that the Diamond Program is absolutely valuable. Getting to choose their groups and pursue their own research interests really made a difference for both the students and research output at our institutes. Obviously, we are very keen to continue this program,” says Esther.

The success of the Diamond Program merits continuation. We shouldn’t miss out on the breakthroughs the program facilitates.

Prof. Arjan Griffioen,

Chair Executive Board – Oncology Graduate School Amsterdam.

The Diamond Program will be officially completed in January 2023 with the graduation of the last Diamond student. Unfortunately, the necessary funds to continue the program have not been acquired.

Esther: “Together, we are working to secure funding in collaboration with Cancer Center Amsterdam and the Netherlands Cancer Institute. I am hopeful we can continue this education program to select top talents and have them shine in cancer research.”

For more information about Oncology Graduate School Amsterdam, the Diamond Program, or opportunities to sponsor continuance of this program, contact Dr. Esther Ruhé.

Dr. Esther Ruhé

Meet the Diamond Program PhD students:

If you have the ambition to become an independent and highly impactful researcher, the Diamond Program is the best thing that can happen to you.

Inge van der Werf

Diamond Program PhD Student, PI Prof. Jacqueline Cloos, Department of Hematology, Cancer Center Amsterdam.

Inge’s research focused on mRNA splicing in pediatric and adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML) as a therapeutic target. In pursuit of technical know-how and answers to her research questions, she visited the labs of Prof. Catriona Jamieson at the University of California (San Diego) and Dr. Ruben van Boxtel at the Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology and Oncode Institute. Based on her work during the Diamond Program, Inge and her scientific collaborators have published 8 peer reviewed articles, including a first author publication in the prestigious journal Cell Stem Cell. She is currently a postdoc in the Van Boxtel lab.

The freedom to choose what and where you want to study is one of the things that makes the Diamond Program unique. I am incredibly grateful to have been given this opportunity.

Josephine Kahn

Diamond Program PhD Student. PIs Prof. René Bernards, Molecular Carcinogenesis, Netherlands Cancer Institute, Prof. Benjamin Ebert, Hematology, Dana Farber Cancer Center.

The Diamond Program enabled Josephine to pursue her interest in chemotherapy-resistant leukemia. Working in the Ebert lab (Dana Farber Cancer Institute - Boston) and the Bernards lab (NKI), she discovered that mutations in the PPM1D gene drive the growth of malignant cells in the presence of chemotherapy and that these cancer cells can be killed using a PPM1D inhibitor. Josephine’s work during the Diamond Program resulted in 4 peer reviewed publications including two in the prestigious journal Blood (one of which was selected as one of the top 10 papers of the year by the journal). She is currently a Clinical Fellow in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

I am forever grateful for the opportunity to participate in the Diamond Program and hope that future PhD students will have the opportunity to benefit from this amazing initiative.

Sanne van Neerven

Diamond Program PhD student. PI Prof. Louis Vermeulen, Center for Experimental Molecular Medicine, Cancer Center Amsterdam.

In the Vermeulen lab, Sanne studied tissue renewal and carcinogenesis in the intestine. One of her key interests was in competition between cells and the link to cancer. She established that mutations in intestinal stem cells can confer a competitive advantage through a novel mechanism called ‘super competition’ and that this provides a basis for the development of colorectal cancer. For this discovery, Sanne won the prestigious international Birnstiel Award and the UNESCO/L’Oreal women in science rising talent award. Sanne is an author on 22 scientific publications, including first author publications in the top scientific journals Nature and Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology. After the Diamond Program, she is continuing her career in cancer research as a postdoc at the University of Cambridge (UK).

I cannot stress enough how valuable this experience has been for me.

Kevin Kos

Diamond Program PhD student. PI Prof. Karin de Visser, Tumor Biology & Immunology, Netherlands Cancer Institute.

Kevin’s research focus has been on the role of immunosuppression in metastatic breast cancer. Kevin established that CD4+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) cells facilitate the metastasis of cancer cells into lymph nodes. Kevin is an author on 10 scientific articles including first author publications in the respected journals Cell Reports and Annual Reviews Cancer Biology. He will defend his PhD thesis in January 2023 and has started a position as Program Coordinator Immunotherapy at the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF).

This article was created for Cancer Center Amsterdam.

^{© 2022 NHBC– All rights reserved.}