Christian U Blank
Division of Molecular Oncology and Immunology
The Netherlands Cancer Institute - Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital (NKI-AVL)
Amsterdam
Netherlands
Christian Blank obtained his MD from the Medical School of the Technical University Munich, Germany, where he also completed his Doctoral thesis (summa cum laude) at the Department for Medical Microbiology in 1997. As a Junior House Officer (1997–1998) Dr Blank held four positions at the Departments of Cardiology and of Radiology at the University Clinic Munich Rechts der Isar, Munich, the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Departments at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Scotland, and the University of Birmingham, England, UK. He went on to attain the position of Physician at the Department of Haematology and Oncology, University of Regensburg, Germany (1998–2001). During 2001–2003, Dr Blank held a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the lab of Professor Thomas Gajewski, University of Chicago, IL, USA. Subsequently he was appointed as Physician and Research Group Leader at the Department of Haematology and Oncology, University of Regensburg, Germany (2003–2007). Dr Blank has obtained two Specialist Degrees in Internal Medicine (2007) and in Haematology/Oncology (2009). Since 2007, he has been appointed Staff Member at the Department of Medical Oncology, and a Group Leader at the Division of Molecular Oncology and Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute - Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital (NKI-AVL), Amsterdam. In 2010, Dr Blank became University Lecturer (Privatdozent) at the University of Regensburg. In addition to his academic background, Dr Blank obtained his Master of Business Administration (MBA), from the University of Warwick, England, UK (2006). Dr Blank is committed to teaching, lecturing on medical courses at the NKI-AVL and the Medical School of the University of Regensburg, where he was appointed Professor in 2015. He is a member of several prestigious societies, including ESMO and ASCO. Dr Blank has been an invited speaker at more than 100 national and international congresses and is the author of more than 100 publications. His research interests broadly include neoadjuvant immunotherapies, targeted and biological response modifiers, and prognostic markers for cancer immunotherapies.