Optimizing the integration of quality of life into oncology decision-making

Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management (ESHPM) offers the position of PhD student for 'Optimizing decision-making in cancer care through better integration of health-related quality of life outcomes'.

Job description
As health-related quality of life (HRQoL) data provide insights into the impact of diseases and treatments on patients, they can serve as valuable input for healthcare decision-makers. Despite this potential, most cancer studies continue to focus primarily on clinical outcomes. The limited emphasis on HRQoL outcomes may be due to various challenges, including the time and resources required for data collection, the high prevalence of missing data, and the scarcity of established thresholds for minimally important differences. Although several methods have been explored to address these challenges, clear guidance on the most appropriate methods for collecting, analyzing, and reporting HRQoL data remains limited. Furthermore, previous studies have examined the correlation of HRQoL outcomes with survival outcomes, but findings have been inconclusive. Therefore, additional research into these correlations, as well as into correlations between HRQoL outcomes and other outcomes relevant to cancer patients, is essential. This could help determine whether other outcomes can serve as predictors of HRQoL.

To facilitate a better integration of HRQoL outcomes into decision-making, the PhD thesis will focus on the following objectives: 1) identifying and addressing the challenges associated with collecting, analyzing, and reporting HRQoL data to provide guidance on appropriate methods for handling these challenges and 2) examining correlations between HRQoL outcomes and other outcomes relevant to cancer patients to determine whether these outcomes can predict HRQoL. A series of case studies in cancer will be conducted using data from various sources, including randomized controlled trials and real-world studies.

We are looking for an enthusiastic candidate with an MSc degree in health care policy and management, health sciences, clinical epidemiology, health economics, or similar, preferably with experience in HRQoL research and healthcare decision-making. The candidate should have demonstrable skills in (systematic) literature reviews and quantitative research methods. In addition, the candidate should possess strong communication skills in Dutch and English. The candidate should be able to work independently, take initiative and keep to deadlines.

We offer you an internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with excellent working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU).

The start date of this position is 1 September 2025 and you will be based at the ESHPM. This position is for 1 fte. We offer a 1,5-year position which will be extended to 4 years based on performance. The salary ranges from a minimum of € 2.901 to a maximum of € 3.707 gross per month Scale PhD on a fulltime basis (38 hours), in accordance with the CAO-NU.

Everything else we offer you, you can find below!

• Everything you need for a good work-life balance: the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 41 days of paid leave with a 40 hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre!
• Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR, FAME or QuEUR.
• Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget and free access to our university library.
• Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.
• Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners, and our campus features a daycare (daycare not paid for by EUR).
• Moving to the Netherlands for your job with EUR? Then you may be eligible for the 30%-ruling if you meet the requirements of the Belastingdienst (Dutch tax agency), and with our Dual Career Programme we will also help your partner find the right job for them.

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is an internationally oriented university with a strong social orientation in its education and research, as expressed in our mission ‘Creating positive societal impact’. EUR is home to 4.100 academics and professionals and almost 33.000 students from more than 140 countries. Everything we do, we do under the credo The Erasmian Way – Making Minds Matter. We’re global citizens, connecting, entrepreneurial, open-minded, and socially involved. These Erasmian Values function as our internal compass and create EUR’s distinctive and recognizable profile. From these values, with a broad perspective and with an eye for diversity, different backgrounds and opinions, our employees work closely together to solve societal challenges from the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Rotterdam. Thanks to the high quality and positive societal impact of our research and education, EUR can compete with the top European universities. www.eur.nl.

Faculty / Institute / Central service
The ESHPM is a leading institute in the Netherlands, specialising in healthcare policy and management across disciplines like economics, law, socio-medical sciences, organisation science, and public administration. Located in the Bayle Building at Erasmus University Rotterdam and closely associated with Erasmus Medical Centre, ESHPM educates about 1,600 students and employs around 200 faculty members, focusing on internationalisation and multidisciplinary research.

We are looking for a PhD student within the department Health Technology Assessment (HTA), a department that is recognized for its independent and excellent research in HTA, health economics and health outcomes research. The HTA department contributes to important and influential methodological innovations in these areas. It is dedicated to stimulating the use of cost-effectiveness information in healthcare decision making. The department is responsible for teaching HTA in several courses of the bachelor Health Policy and Management, the master programmes Health Economics Policy and Law, and Health Economics, and the European master programme Health Economics and Management.