We are looking for a Postdoc who will help in an exciting European project. In six years we want to develop an algorithm with AI to predict cardiovascular risks and disease progression in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) and/or peripheral arterial diseases (PAD).

For both vascular diseases, aortic abdominal aneurysms (AAA) and peripheral arterial diseases (PAD), there is no effective medical therapy. The best current management of these diseases consists of aggressive modification of general cardiovascular risk factors such as targeting cholesterol, blood pressure, and diabetes, next to lifestyle adjustment. A major challenge in current disease management is that to date, it is unclear how progression of vascular diseases and the risk of cardiovascular events are influenced by these risk factors. We cannot predict whose symptoms in PAD patients progress from claudication to rest pain/gangrene. In AAA we cannot predict whose AAA will grow or rupture. There are no means for personalized cardiovascular risk prevention or prediction of cardiocerebrovascular events.

For more information, visit: Amsterdam UMC leads an AI-powered hunt for high-risk vascular patients

The aim of this project VASCUL-AID:

• Is to predict the risk of cardiovascular events and progression of the vascular diseases AAA and PAD to influence the course of disease improving the patient's quality of life and care and assisting clinicians to make better-informed decisions involving the patient;
• We will collect data from existing databases, retrospectively from 6 clinical hospitals in Europe and UK. Validation will be done in prospective patient studies in these 6 clinical hospitals as well;
• To this end, we will deliver a clinically relevant and cost-effective trustworthy AI-driven platform (VASCUL-AID) that integrates multi-source parameters including imaging, proteomic and genomic data as well as life-style patient data from wearables to enable personalized vascular disease management.

Your tasks will be both scientific and organizational, your main tasks will include:

• To supervise the datacollection all over Europe and to implement it in the international dataplatform;
• To collaborate with all 14 partners and to identify the deliverables and milestones that need to be reached in the project and to make the reports;
• To identify the risks in the project;
• To implement, test and evaluate the new approaches in the different clinics in Europe;
• You will work on the entire AI- chain and clinical workflow of aortic aneurysm and PAD treatment. You will acquire patients' data, analyse the data and develop the AI prediction algorithm together with the partners of the consortium;
• Special attention is to the ethics, cost-effectiveness and implementation part of AI.

We are searching for candidates who want to improve healthcare with a medical background. On the one hand, the candidate must enjoy to learn new technical approaches in AI, perform data analysis and machine learning approaches or have interest in multisource data analysis or biomedical analysis (proteomics and genomics). The candidate must function in a multidisciplinary team and collaborate with doctors to show the clinical advantages of the technique and get it implemented in the clinical workflow.

A candidate must have:

• A PhD-degree (or obtaining one within 6 months)
• A medical degree or medical degree with technical background (Technical Physician), An MSc degree in Medical Physics, Mathematics or a related discipline (please state your average grade) is to be considered.
• An interest in health care and, in particular, vascular surgery or imaging or biomedical
• An interdisciplinary mindset; open and proactive in interacting with researchers from different disciplines (e.g. doctors, medical researchers and other technical researchers)
• Programming experience (Programming skills in Python and/or C++ are a bonus)
• English communication, presentation and writing skills
• Highly motivated and creative

Additional skills (not obligated) we would like to see:

• Experience with machine learning
• Experience with data analysis

Salary Scale 11: 4.325 to 5.919 euro gross when employed full-time (step depending on qualifications and experience).

• A contract for the duration of the project
• Besides a good basic salary, you will also receive an 8.3% year-end bonus and 8% holiday allowance.
• Free and unlimited access to our online learning environment GoodHabitz.
• Pension accrual with ABP, of which pay 70% of the premium.
• Reimbursemen tof 75% of your public transport costs. Would you rather travel by bike? Then we have a good bicycle scheme.
• An active personnel association and the Young Amsterdam UMC association, which organise fun (sports) activities and events.

Salary increase of 4% effective November 2023

Amsterdam UMC

You will be part of the translational vascular research group at the Amsterdam UMC (location AMC) and EU consortium. Associate prof. Dr. Kak Khee Yeung will be your direct supervisor. Dr. Vincent Jongkind, dr. Arjan Hoksbergen, prof. Dr. Ron Balm, Prof. Dr. Jan Blankensteijn, Prof. Dr. Marlies Schijven will be part of the team that will provide guidance. The translational vascular surgery research group research group offer a resourceful and stimulating scientific environment. We are an energetic and enthusiastic team of roughly 16-20 PhD-candidates and 1 postdoc. The VASCUL-AID project will have their own PhD-students, data manager and project manager.

At the Amsterdam UMC, we see over 300 aortic aneurysms yearly and over 500 PAD patients, and we are equipped with a hybrid endovascular room.