In an inspiring inaugural lecture on December 19, 2025, Professor of Pulmonary Diseases Michel van den Heuvel (UMC Utrecht) reflected on recent developments in pulmonary care, the importance of collaboration, and the role of scientific research in improving care for patients with a lung disease. As a pulmonologist and as of last year also as a professor affiliated with UMC Utrecht, he spoke about the choices that have shaped his career and the challenges he believes we must address as a society.
In his lecture, Michel van den Heuvel, MD PhD (Professor of Pulmonary Diseases and head of the Department of Pulmonary Diseases at UMC Utrecht) emphasized that the Dutch healthcare sector is facing major challenges, particularly due to an aging population, budget cuts, and rising healthcare costs. Lung diseases such as lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pneumonia are among the leading causes of death, and the demand for healthcare will increase significantly in the years to come. Our healthcare system cannot cope with this pressure, and there is therefore an urgent need for change. Collaboration between different healthcare institutions and disciplines is essential to make healthcare more efficient and effective.
Within UMC Utrecht, there are already excellent examples of sustainable collaboration, such as ONCOMID, in which the recently established Lung Cancer Network Central Netherlands works with healthcare professionals in various hospitals in the region to improve care for lung cancer patients. This approach facilitates innovation, as it focuses on the interests of the individual patient and the collaboration is not only about medical care, but also about scientific research into lung diseases and improvement of organizational aspects.
He also emphasizes the importance of network care. Care networks, in which knowledge and capacity are shared, offer the opportunity to respond more quickly to new insights and innovations. Michel van den Heuvel stated that sharing knowledge and expertise between different hospitals and academic institutions, such as UMC Utrecht and other regional partners, is essential for improving care.
He also pointed out the need for more reliable data in healthcare. Good and reliable data on diseases, treatments, and effects in clinical practice can help to evaluate treatments more rapidly and may improve existing treatments. Scientific research cannot therefore be separated from daily practice. Van den Heuvel said that as an academic hospital, we must not only focus on conducting scientific research, but also take responsibility for improving patient care in practice.
Another important point is the role of scientific associations and hospitals in healthcare innovation. Van den Heuvel called for a more efficient research infrastructure, in which scientific innovations can be brought to the patient more quickly. The research process should therefore be less bureaucratic and more focused on collaboration and implementation.
In the last part of his lecture, Michel van den Heuvel focused on the social responsibility of scientists. In the future, scientific research will have to be designed more intelligently, with a focus on delivering practical, social solutions within financial limits. Examples include research into the most meaningful forms of care and the use of real-world data. This requires cooperation, trust, and commitment from all involved. He called for collaboration to create a better future for lung care and healthcare in general, with a clear focus on improving patients’ quality of life.
Michel van den Heuvel concluded his lecture with a personal story from his childhood about Sikkie, the tobacco-chewing goat on his family farm, and the disastrous consequences that the same tobacco had on the health of his loved ones. Ultimately, these life experiences – perhaps partly unconsciously – appear to have had a major influence on his career choices.
Michel van den Heuvel (1966, Afferden GLD) studied medicine at the University of Amsterdam. In 1999, he obtained his PhD from the Free University Amsterdam for his research into the role of dendritic cells in asthma. He then specialized in the field of lung diseases. In 2005, he worked for a year as a pulmonologist at the Tygerberg Academic Hospital of the University of Stellenbosch (Cape Town, South Africa). In 2006, he joined the Netherlands Cancer Institute/Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital and further specialized in thoracic oncology, with a focus on chemoradiotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapy. At Radboudumc, Van den Heuvel became a professor of pulmonary medicine in 2017. In 2024, he joined UMC Utrecht as a Professor of Pulmonary Diseases and head of the Department of Pulmonary Diseases.
