
Prof. Dr. Alexander C. J. van Akkooi MD, PhD
Chair of Melanoma Surgical Oncology, Melanoma Institute Australia; Associate Professor of Melanoma Surgical Oncology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, AustraliaProf. Dr. Alexander van Akkooi is a board-certified surgical oncologist specializing in cutaneous oncology (melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer, particularly Merkel Cell Carcinoma) at the Melanoma Institute Australia, University of Sydney and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. He is the immediate past-chairman of the EORTC (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer) Melanoma Group. Prof. Dr. van Akkooi has published over 225 peer-reviewed papers (H index 40) in high-impact journals, including NEJM, Lancet, Lancet Oncology, Cell, Nature Medicine, among others, and has presented at numerous international meetings. He is a member of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), Society for Melanoma Research (SMR), and American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Prof. Dr. van Akkooi was awarded his medical degree from Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. He was a resident in general surgery at Maasstad Ziekenhuis in Rotterdam, and underwent residency training in surgical oncology at the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam and Erasmus MC Cancer Institute in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. His PhD was awarded cum laude in 2011 from Erasmus University on the topic of "Sentinel Node Tumor Load Assessment in Melanoma: Dilemmas and Clinical Management."
Disclosures
Prof. Dr. van Akkooi is on the Advisory Board of and has received Consultancy Honoraria from Amgen, Bristol-Myers Squibb, MSD-Merck, Merck-Pfizer, Neracare, Novartis, Pierre Fabre, Provectus, Sanofi, Sirius Medical, 4SC. He also reports Research Grants from Amgen and Merck-Pfizer, which were all paid to his institute.
Recent Contributions to PracticeUpdate:
- 2023 Top Story in Oncology: Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapy in Advanced Melanoma
- 2023 Top Story in Oncology: Neoadjuvant–Adjuvant Immunotherapy for Advanced Melanoma
- Association Between Pretreatment Emotional Distress and Neoadjuvant Immune Checkpoint Blockade Response in Patients With Melanoma
- Adjuvant Pembrolizumab Combined With Personalized mRNA Vaccine in High-Risk Resected Melanoma
- SWOG S1801: Pathologic Response With Neoadjuvant vs Adjuvant Pembrolizumab in Resectable Stage IIIb–IV Melanoma
- Adjuvant Nivolumab for Resected Stage IIB/C Melanoma
- Safety and Antitumour Activity of the Anti–PD-1/CTLA-4 Bispecific Antibody Cadonilimab in Patients With Advanced Solid Tumours
- ESMO 2023: Recommendations From Dr. Alex van Akkooi for Melanoma
- Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab for Advanced Salivary Gland Cancer
- A Reinforcement Learning Model for AI-Based Decision Support in Skin Cancer