My fascination with chemistry began around the age of 7 when my father, a chemist by training, taught my siblings and me how to separate the colors in a marker pen using a coffee filter and water. My interest in health and well-being was sparked by my mother, a psychologist by training, who dedicated her life to helping others and who taught her children to always take care of others.
Already when I was 13 years old, my parents told me that studying pharmacy would be a good option for me, if not the best one. This study offers a combination of biology, chemistry, and patient care which seemed to link very well to my study interests. I ignored their advice, however, probably due to teenage rebellion. I did not even find out what pharmacy was until I needed to choose a study four years later. Back then I visited an open day at the School of Pharmacy (University of Groningen, the Netherlands) just to please my parents. Little did I know that during this day I would realize that my parents were right all along: pharmacy was the right study for me.
Enjoying life as a pharmacy student was easy for me. I liked pretty much all courses, although the pharmaceutical analysis courses stood out for me. Applying for a bachelor’s and, later, a master’s research project in the field of analytical chemistry was therefore an obvious choice. While carrying out these projects, I developed an interest in clinical chemistry which is the medical specialty devoted to analyzing patient samples and helping doctors in providing optimal care on the basis of corresponding results. This interest furthermore led me to a PhD project aimed at the development of novel blood tests for specific diseases and their application to answer important clinical questions. This project then led me to Geneva, Switzerland and later back to Groningen, where I now dedicate my life to advancing medical pharmaceutical sciences and training the next generation of pharmaceutical experts.
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But there is more…
- I love cooking! My partner and I have a huge stack of cookbooks and an almost embarrassing pile of culinary magazines lying around in the corner of our living room. Still, my favorite breakfast is American pancakes with my aunt’s delicious homemade jams; my favorite meal for lunch or dinner is an extravagant pancake with bacon, cheese, ham, dried sausage, onions, mushrooms, and parsley; and my favorite dessert is pancake flambeed in French génépi liqueur. (this may come as a surprise, but I took a side-job as kitchen assistant in a pancake restaurant in the three years before I went off to college)
- I am a big cycling and running fanatic! During my PhD, I started increasing my mileage with the excuse that I needed to clear my mind, and now almost every day I wake up with the desire to go outside and push myself to the limit. Major milestones include running the Rotterdam marathon three times (2015, 2016, and 2018; PB = 03:29:01) and cycling the Ronde van Vlaanderen (2018), Liège-Bastogne-Liège (2017), Amstel Gold Race (2017, 2019), Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne (2019), Omloop het Nieuwsblad (2019), and Paris-Roubaix (2023) as well as some 400+ km rides around the Dutch Zuiderzee (2017), through all 12 Dutch provinces (2018), and from the Northernmost point to the Southernmost point of the Dutch mainland (2022). Also, I call myself a ‘cinglé du Mont-Ventoux’ (Mont Ventoux madman) since May 20, 2018 upon climbing this wonderful mountain from all three sides (by bike) on one day. I obviously did not get a medal for that, but I am still pretty proud of making it to the top three times that day. After my PhD and upon moving to Switzerland, I started to focus a bit more on the shorter running distances, while also on trail running and triathlon. The COVID-19 crisis, unfortunately, prevented me from participating in many events in the years after my PhD, yet I did manage to complete some short-distance (Nyon 2019, Lemelerveld 2022 and 2024, Klazinaveen 2023), middle-distance (Geneva 2021), and a full-distance triathlon (Arnhem 2021). Also, I managed to complete a sub 20-minute 5 kilometer during a solo event organized right after the peak of the COVID-19 crisis in 2020, and I realized a sub-90 minute half marathon during one of the first large-scale running events organized in Geneva in May 2021. Thereby, I could tick a lot of boxes on my sports to-do list, yet I still ‘need’ to finish a sub-40 minute 10 kilometer (requiring me to shave off almost two minutes from my PB set in 2023), and I want to reach the finish lines of the cycling classics Milano-Sanremo, and Il Lombardia.
- I like making music. Admittedly, I do not make music that often anymore, but I am still the proud owner of two drum kits, two electric guitars, two acoustic guitars, and numerous small percussion instruments (you name it, and I probably have it). I do still listen to music a lot, and I am happy to have a broad music taste, ranging from Udo Lindenberg’s ballads to Nada Surf’s indie rock and from Eric Clapton’s weeping guitar solos to Sleep Token’s haunting screams.
- I love spending time with family, friends, and cats. It is maybe a bit cheesy, but I really feel blessed with my loving relatives. Their support and influence has been crucial for what I have become and achieved. Please know that I carry you always in my heart.
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