Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schüller has taken on the role of Scientific Director at the Research Institute Children’s Cancer Center Hamburg
2025-02-05

Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schüller appointed new Scientific Director of the Research Institute Children’s Cancer Center Hamburg

As of the beginning of this year, Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schüller has taken on the role of Scientific Director at the Research Institute Children’s Cancer Center Hamburg (FI). Under his leadership, pediatric cancer research at the institute will continue to expand, focusing on establishing additional research groups and strengthening collaborations with UKE (University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf) and other research institutions.

Prof. Dr. Schüller succeeds Prof. Dr. Martin Horstmann, who has led the institute with great dedication and success since its founding in 2006. Prof. Dr. Horstmann will remain at FI as Head of the Leukemias Research Group until his retirement in 2027.

Schüller joined the UKE in 2016 as a Professor of Molecular Pediatric Neuro-Oncology, a position funded by the Children’s Cancer Foundation Hamburg. He has also served as a Senior Physician at the Institute of Neuropathology and has led the Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Group at FI for many years.

New research groups to strengthen expertise

With Prof. Dr. Schüller’s appointment, the number of research groups at FI is expanding. The aim is to broaden the existing research focus and advance pediatric cancer research. Last year, the Neuro-Immuno-Oncology Research Group was established. Now, two additional groups are being formed to focus on Lymphoma Research as well as Computational Pediatric Oncology.

"We are excited about the synergy effects that will arise from the collaboration between our research groups, making our research even more effective," says Schüller. He places these developments within the broader context of pediatric cancer research: "Our field is undergoing a paradigm shift—from aggressive chemotherapy towards personalized, less harmful therapies. The goal is to improve survival rates and enhance the quality of life for young patients by reducing side effects and long-term consequences. Innovative technologies, immunotherapies, and bioinformatics models will be crucial in this transition."

With the young patients at the Children’s Cancer Center at UKE in focus, the Research Institute Children’s Cancer Center Hamburg is committed to tackling future challenges.

 

About Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schüller

After studying human medicine in Freiburg, Bonn, and Munich, Ulrich Schüller obtained his Doctorate in Medicine from the University of Bonn in 2003. He began his medical career at the Institute of Neuropathology at the University of Bonn before conducting research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard University in Boston (2005–2006) with a fellowship from the German Cancer Aid (Deutsche Krebshilfe). His research has always focused on neural development and the formation of pediatric brain tumors. In 2007, Schüller continued his neuropathology specialization at the Center for Neuropathology, Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) in Munich. There, he established his own research group as part of the Max-Eder Young Investigator Program of the German Cancer Aid.

In 2009, he obtained board certification in neuropathology, completed his habilitation, Venia legendi, and was appointed Senior Physician in 2010 in Munich. After declining professorship offers from the Universities of Würzburg and Lausanne, Schüller accepted a professorship in molecular pediatric neuro-oncology at UKE in 2016. At UKE’s Institute of Neuropathology, he is responsible for diagnosing pediatric brain tumors and molecular neuropathology. Prof. Dr. Schüller also serves as a reference neuropathologist for the SIOP Ependymoma II Study, which focuses on treating children with ependymomas and evaluating cerebrospinal fluid samples in children with brain tumors. Additionally, he oversees the UKE core facility for global methylome analyses.

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