Professor and Chair of radiology

More information about Roel Bennink

Professor and Chair of radiology

Radiology

Radiology is a versatile specialty that is increasingly becoming central within the hospital due to its wide application in both diagnostics and treatment, including image-guided interventions and molecular imaging. The Chair of Radiology at Leiden University contributes to the academic development of the field, guided in part by the ABCD model: the radiologist as (A)Innovator, (B)Therapist – Behandelaar in Dutch, (C)Consultant, and (D)Diagnostician. Multidisciplinary collaboration is at the heart of these roles, involving cooperation between physicians, researchers, clinical physicists, pharmacists, and referring specialties both within the hospital and across the region or even beyond. The LUMC has a key responsibility to foster this collaboration while ensuring high-quality patient care and research.

The Chair of Radiology plays a strategic role in promoting education, research, and the sustainable employability of staff within the department. In light of increasing healthcare demand and workload, it is vital to strike a balance between clinical duties and academic responsibilities such as teaching and scientific research. Attention to generational differences, team dynamics, and the effective use of automation, including AI, is essential in this regard. Strengthening the research culture—through collaboration with partner institutions and innovative companies—is another core task of the Chair. In doing so, radiology provides a structural contribution to future-proof healthcare, education, and innovation.

Academic career

Prof. dr. Roel Bennink is Professor and Chair of Radiology at Leiden University Medical Center. Until recently, he held the position of Professor of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at Amsterdam University Medical Center. He earned his Ph.D. in 2004 with a thesis on Nuclear Gastroenterology. Over the past five years, his research has focused on multimodality nuclear gastroenterology and oncology, with particular emphasis on regional liver function and upper gastrointestinal (GI) oncology and therapy. In close collaboration with the Departments of Surgery and Oncology, he has conducted numerous studies utilizing molecular imaging to assess total and regional liver function in both preclinical disease models and patients.

Prof. Bennink served as Director of the Nuclear Medicine Residency Program at the AMC from 2011 and led the Radiology Residency Program between 2018 and 2022. Nationally, he is a former Vice President of the Dutch Society of Nuclear Medicine and a former President of the Concilium Radiologicum. Since 2010, he has been a member of the Dutch Medical Specialist’s Certification and Registration Board (RGS), serving as its President from 2022 to 2025. He has also been a member of the National Medical Specialists Education Council.