Petur Snaebjornsson

I have been working at the Netherlands Cancer Institute since 2013. I trained as a clinical pathologist at the VUmc in Amsterdam and studied medicine at the Reykjavik University in Iceland.

Gastrointestinal (GE) pathology is one of my two main focus areas. Within the field of gastrointestinal oncology at the Netherlands Cancer Institute, we primarily specialize in colon cancer, recurrent rectal cancer, complex pelvic surgeries, anal cancer, appendix cancer (including pseudomyxoma peritonei) HIPEC surgeries for peritoneal metastases, liver metastases and tumors, esophageal cancer, (hereditary) stomach cancer, tumors in the small intestine, neuroendocrine tumors, and molecular diagnostics of GE tumors. The Pathology department is involved in many clinical trials for metastatic illness of the digestive system. We closely collaborate with the research department at the Netherlands Cancer Institute in several studies. The Pathology department often collaborates with the Hereditary Cancer Clinic (HTT) in diagnostics for hereditary colon cancer. I am one of the directors of the Dutch Colorectal Cancer Group (DCCG) and the Dutch council for colon cancer guidelines. I obtained my PhD in colon cancer in 2016. Besides diagnostics, I conduct research into colon cancer at the Netherlands Cancer Institute.

My other focus point is diagnostic and scientific research into carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP), which is cancer of an unknown source or tumor type. We use whole genome sequencing, WGS, full DNA testing. At the NKI we are pioneers in WGS in diagnostics in the Netherlands. Read more about it in this interview. I also specialize in the pathology of soft tissue.