Research

Mission of the department ENT / Head and Neck VUmc Amsterdam

It is the research ambition of the department to realize significant improvements in two subfields of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery.  
Both research fields have their own dynamics and within each field different areas of emphasis can be distinguished.

1. Diagnostics and therapy of head and neck cancer, ultimately leading to prevention and better survival with good quality of life. 
The department has a longstanding research interest in the etiology, prevention, diagnostics, and treatment of head and neck cancer. The research team, headed by René Leemans, consists of (bio)chemists, (molecular) biologists, psychologists, and physicians. 
This research can be divided in three parts

Research line 1:  Molecular diagnosis and therapy of cancer and precursor lesions . 
Research line 2: Molecular imaging
Research line 3: Quality of Life

2. Diagnostics and rehabilitation of hearing loss, ultimately leading to optimal auditory communication and prevention of social isolation. 
The department has a tradition in research on speech intelligibility in noise: its measurement, the background of impairment, social impact, and ways of rehabilitation. The research team consists of physicists, psychologists, and physicians. 
Research areas are: