Meet Dr. Marieke Van Daele: Postdoctoral Fellow from Belgium Researching Lung Cancer
photographed by the Weizmann Photography Unit
Dr. Marieke Van Daele is a postdoctoral researcher in Prof. Yosef Yarden’s laboratory in the Department of Immunology and Regenerative Biology at the Weizmann Institute of Science, where she focuses on lung cancer research. After completing her PhD in the United Kingdom, she joined the lab to pursue innovative approaches to understanding and treating the disease.
Read Dr. Marieke Van Daele’s reflections below.
What are you studying and researching in your postdoctoral program?
Prof. Yarden’s laboratory focuses on the role of EGFR, a growth factor receptor, in various types of cancer. My work is within the lung cancer arm of the lab, where my project focuses on resistance to targeted therapies used to treat EGFR-driven lung cancer. Although EGFR inhibitors are initially effective in a significant proportion of patients, most tumors eventually relapse, typically within a year or two, due to the cancer cells’ ability to adapt and evade treatment. My project investigates one such adaptive mechanism—therapy-induced mutagenesis mediated by low-fidelity DNA polymerases—and aims to develop a novel combination therapy that might prevent tumor adaptation and subsequent regrowth.
What makes the Weizmann Institute of Science unique, in your experience?
What I value most about working at Weizmann is the exceptional culture of collaboration and the ease of access to expertise and advanced technologies across the Institute. Whenever I would like to implement a new technique or establish a novel assay, I can find colleagues with relevant experience or complementary expertise. This environment fosters ambitious thinking, where no idea feels too complex or unattainable, and strongly encourages innovative approaches to scientific questions. As a result, I have been able to expand my technical skill set and engage in productive collaborations with experts from neighboring fields.
What is something that you will take with you when you complete your postdoctoral program?
Building on this collaborative experience, working with scientists from diverse disciplines has strengthened my ability to collaborate across teams and communicate effectively beyond my immediate research group. In addition, mentoring visiting students from around the world has allowed me to develop strong project management and interpersonal skills. These experiences have been invaluable, and I am sure they will continue to shape my approach to research and leadership throughout my career.