Thoas Fioretos appointed new director of the SciLifeLab Clinical Genomics platform

Earlier this year, SciLifeLab appointed professor Thoas Fioretos from Lund University director of the Clinical Genomics platform, effective from June 1.

“I have been part of the Clinical Genomics platform since 2016, as the director of the Clinical Genomics node in Lund. I am excited to take a more active role in the leadership at the national level and contribute to the development of precision medicine and data driven life science in Sweden. I already appreciate the support of our platform coordination officer Eva Berglund, who has made major contributions towards the development of our platform during the last two years”, says Thoas Fioretos.

Thoas Fioretos is a professor at the Division of Clinical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine at Lund university, and a senior consultant at Skåne University Hospital. Thoas has also been a member of the National SciLifeLab Committee. His research focuses on genomic and functional studies of acute leukemias, and identification of new therapeutic targets. He has published more than 120 scientific articles and many of his findings have been translated into improved clinical diagnostics of leukemia.

“Thoas Fioretos has extensive experience of translational research and clinical diagnostics, and is perfectly suited to lead the Clinical Genomics platform. I will continue to be the director of the precision medicine initiative Genomic Medicine Sweden, which was initiated by the Clinical Genomics Platform, and we will retain close connections between our infrastructures to ensure the alignment of our operations”, says Richard Rosenquist Brandell, professor in Clinical Genetics at Karolinska Institutet and current director of the Clinical Genomics platform.

The Clinical Genomics platform (previously called the Diagnostics Development platform) consists of seven nodes that provide service at all seven medical faculties and university hospitals in Sweden (Gothenburg, Linköping, Lund, Stockholm, Umeå, Uppsala, Örebro). The services include development, validation and implementation of new high-throughput technologies for clinical and translational research projects, clinical trials and diagnostics within healthcare

“The close connections to healthcare on a national level is a major strength of our platform. I look forward to continuing to develop our services and at the same time make a real difference for the patients” says Lucia Cavelier, clinical molecular geneticist at Uppsala University Hospital, associate professor at Uppsala University, and co-director of the Clinical Genomics platform.

Photo: Thoas Fioretos: André de Loisted/Cancerfonden, Lucia Cavelier: Staffan Claesson