Wigard has a strong track record as cancer genomics researcher. He has been a research groupleader at the University Medical Center Utrecht. He founded Cyclomics as a spin-off during these years. Following his academic career, he became CSO of Frame Therapeutics, a biotech startup focusing on cancer antigen discovery. Following the acquisition of Frame by CureVac, Wigard served for 2 years as managing director of CureVac Netherlands.

Ronald has been a cancer research leader for many decades. He was director of the Hubrecht Institute and served as a minister for several years before founding Frame Therapeutics, a startup dedicated to development of cancer immunotherapy based on frame-shift neoantigens. The company was sold within 3 years to CureVac, where the technology forms the basis for CureVac's oncology strategy.

Michiel studied biomedical engineering in Enschede and founded Fetch in September 2023. The company developed a proprietary technology to capture circulating tumor cells from patients' blood. Following the acquisition of Fetch, Michiel joined Tzu's leadership team as Chief Technology Officer.

Noëlle has been involved with Tzu from day one, responsible for establishing and improving all operational processes. She is a driven young professional with a background in Global Business & Sustainability and known for her curiosity, structured approach, and enthusiasm for new challenges.

Mike has a career spanning more than twenty years in both the biotech industry and academia, with a strong track record in business development, innovation, drug discovery, and antibody development. He held senior roles at Leiden University Medical Center, Sanofi, Leyden Labs and served as Vice President BD & Innovation at Avidicure before joining Tzu.

Andre is providing financial support to the Tzu team. He has a long track record in biotech and served in various financial roles at Pharming, Isotis and ProQR.

After earning a PhD in computational biology at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), where her research focused on sarcomas, Debora joined Tzu as a Bioinformatician. Her work at Tzu involves developing single-cell omics analysis pipelines, analyzing sequencing data, and building automated solutions that accelerate our research. Combining a passion for programming with a fascination for new technologies, she explores innovative approaches to push the boundaries of cancer research and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

After earning a PhD in computational biology at the Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI), where his research focused on immunotherapy responses, Alberto joined Tzu as a Bioinformatics Scientist. His work at Tzu involves developing infrastructure for single-cell CTC analysis, mining complex sequencing data, and translating molecular profiles into therapeutic insights. Combining a strong foundation in molecular biology with a drive for non-invasive diagnostics, he explores innovative approaches to discover novel therapeutics and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

With over 16 years in CTC and liquid biopsy across academic and commercial settings, Joost brings a strong background to the Tzu team. His work has focused on rare cell enrichment and single-cell selection, combined with downstream genomics and proteomics analyses. Most recently, as a product developer, he developed technologies for in-depth analysis of genomic rearrangements. At Tzu, these experiences come together to help shape and grow the genomic pillar. What drives him is the belief that CTCs offer a unique window into cancer progression, supporting the discovery of new therapeutic targets and better-informed treatment decisions.

Tom is a biomedical engineer who has been working on CTCs since the very start of his scientific career as a bachelor student supervised by Joost. As a PhD candidate he gained experience as a clinical scientist in specialized diagnostics and he later joined FETCH as a postdoc. At Tzu he works on technology for the enrichment and isolation of single CTCs.

Sara is our Medical Associate from Italy. After earning her degree in Pharmacy she pursued a career in oncology, making the leap to the Netherlands to join Tzu.

Maarten is a computational biologist specialising in algorithm development and statistical modelling. After 3 years at CureVac, he now contributes to precision oncology at Tzu.

Jenneke specialized in transcriptomics during her MSc in Biological Sciences at the University of Amsterdam. She then started at Tzu as a research associate where she researches the best ways to get the most information out of precious CTCs. Her fascination for transcriptomics, belief in the future of personalized cancer therapy and love of a fast-paced environment are what motivate Jenneke in her work. Her enthusiasm shines through in everything she does.

Giulio is an Italian student based in the Netherlands who discovered his passion for bioinformatics during his biomedical sciences bachelor's. His strong interest in cancer research motivated him to join Tzu's team.

Britt completed her bachelor's in Biomedical Sciences at VU Amsterdam and pursued a master's in Oncology Research. She is intrigued by the complex mechanisms behind cancer development and loves working with new experimental techniques.

Willem is doing his Bachelor's in Life Sciences graduation project at Tzu. He joined with a growing curiosity for cancer research and is gaining hands-on experience with transcriptomics in a biotech startup environment.

Cornelus is a master's student in Oncology and bioinformatics intern at Tzu. He is passionate about early cellular evolution and the emergence of cancer cells.

René Beukema was General Counsel at Crucell and instrumental to the deal with Johnson & Johnson. His experience was also essential for the IPO of Galapagos and ProQR and he led the acquisition of Frame Therapeutics with CureVac. René has a background in law and a very broad network in the venture capital and investment banking space.

Ronald has been a cancer research leader for many decades. He was director of the Hubrecht Institute and served as a minister for several years before founding Frame Therapeutics. The company was sold within 3 years to CureVac, where the technology forms the basis for CureVac's oncology strategy.

Ronald Brus has a strong passion for the biopharmaceutical industry. He previously served as CEO of Crucell up to their €3.5B acquisition by J&J. He co-founded myTomorrows and is also co-founder and CBO of Leyden Labs, developing nasal sprays to combat viral infections.

Prof. Dr. Leon Terstappen is a leading expert in cancer diagnostics and single-cell analysis. He was instrumental in developing the CellSearch system, the first FDA-cleared technology for detecting circulating tumour cells. Until recently he served as Chair of Medical Cell BioPhysics at the University of Twente.

Prof. Dr. Nikolas Stoecklein is Professor for Experimental Surgical Oncology at Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf. His major research interests are minimal residual cancer and early systemic disease in gastrointestinal cancers, focusing on CTCs at single cell level.

Prof. Dr. John Haanen is renowned for his work on tumour immunology and immunotherapy. He worked for many years at the Netherlands Cancer Institute as research group leader, professor, and head of the Division of Medical Oncology.

Prof. Dr. Bob Löwenberg is a hematologist and emeritus professor at Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam. He has served as editor-in-chief of the journal Blood, co-founded IntroGene (later Crucell, acquired by J&J) and co-founded Frame Cancer Therapeutics, acquired by CureVac in 2022.

Prof. Dr. Peter Kuhn is founding director of the USC Michelson Convergent Science Institute in Cancer. He trained as a physicist and has built breakthrough technologies for early cancer detection using deep learning models, publishing over 300 peer reviewed papers and patents.