About us
The diagnosis of many diseases and the treatment of cancer are nowadays unthinkable without nuclear medicine. Behind the production of a nuclear scan or the use of radionuclide therapy lies an entire ecosystem in which hospitals and industry work closely together — from the production of radioisotopes and radiopharmaceuticals to their eventual application in the clinic.
The Netherlands is a global leader in nuclear medicine, thanks to its production of medical radioisotopes, high level of expertise, and a broad sector of companies active in the nuclear domain. The field is currently developing rapidly, particularly through new therapeutic applications. The recently published report “Analysis of the Dutch Nuclear Medicine Ecosystem” identifies human capital as one of the key challenges for further growth. However, much of the education in this field is fragmented, while emerging developments make continuous professional education and training increasingly necessary.
Team
Meike van Wijk
Meike van Wijk studied Technical Medicine, with a specialization in Medical Imaging and Interventions, at the University of Twente. She graduated in September 2021 at the Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine of the Radboudumc on “Optimized MRI techniques for holmium-166 selective internal radiation therapy”. After graduation she started her PhD in October 2021 on further optimization and validation of MR-guided holmium-166 TARE. In October 2024 she started as a projectmanager for DECISIVE and FAST.
Antonia Denkova
Prof. Dr. Ir. Antonia Denkova works as professor at the TU Delft, the Netherlands. Her research focuses on the development of new routes for radionuclide production and applying radiation in health applications such as radionuclide therapy and combined therapies, aiming at reducing side effects to healthy tissue.
She also teaches in several courses at the TU Delft, such as Nuclear Chemistry and Nuclear Science Technology and Applications. She has recently developed a MOOC titled "Radionuclide Production” which she co-produced with dr. ir. Robin de Kruijff.
Mark Rijpkema
Dr. Mark Rijpkema studied chemistry at the Radboud University of Nijmegen. He obtained his doctoral degree in 2003 with his thesis ‘MR imaging and MR spectroscopy to guide treatment selection for patients with tumours in the brain and head-neck region’. Subsequently, he worked as a postdoc at the University of Utrecht. In 2006, he moved back to Nijmegen to work at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience of the Donders Institute, where he started a research line investigating the genetic underpinnings of brain structure and function. In 2011 he returned to the field of oncology at the department of Nuclear Medicine and started his own research group on intraoperative fluorescence imaging and image-guided surgery.
Currently, he works as an assiocate professor at the department of Medical Imaging with a stong focus on teaching, both basic and advanced topics in molecular imaging. He is also active in developing new courses for students in biomedical sciences as well as courses for continuing education for professionals in the field of nuclear medicine, like the Radboud Summerschool on dosimetry and radiobiology.
Robin de Kruijff
Dr.ir. Robin de Kruijff works as assistant professor at the TU Delft | Reactor Institute, the Netherlands. Her research focuses on the development of radionuclide production and separation routes using the on-site research reactor. She employs separation techniques such as (microfluidic) solvent extraction, ion exchange chromatography, and hot atom chemistry to achieve high specific activity radionuclides, supporting the ongoing advancement of nuclear medicine.
Next to her research she is an enthousiastic lecturer, teaching master courses Nuclear Chemistry and Nuclear Medicine and others. She also develops freely accessible massive online open courses (MOOC), including the recently published MOOC titled "Radionuclide Production” which she co-produced with Prof. dr. ir. Antonia Denkova.
Anna Verdouw
Anna Verdouw obtained her Master's degree in Applied Physics from TU Delft in December 2025. During her studies, she completed a thesis titled "Surfactant based synthesis of polydimethylsiloxane beads for a chelator impregnated radionuclide separation resin" and did an internship at the Franciscus hospital. She also contributed to a MOOC on "Radionuclide Production". In January 2026, she started as project manager at NMEP.