Bob Löwenberg

Bob Löwenberg, MD, PhD is Professor Emeritus of Hematology at Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam and co-founder and longstanding Scientific Director of HOVON (Hemato-Oncology Foundation for Adults in the Netherlands), the largest cooperative hematologic oncology group in the Benelux region. He is one of the towering figures in AML clinical research spanning five decades, best known for his leadership of randomized trials defining optimal induction chemotherapy regimens for AML. His HOVON trials established key standards including the superiority of high-dose daunorubicin (90 mg/m²) over standard dosing in younger AML patients (NEJM 2009), influencing international induction standards. Prof. Löwenberg has led landmark studies addressing AML in elderly patients, refining the boundaries of intensive induction eligibility and demonstrating the limitations of dose escalation in older patients (NEJM 2009). He has published extensively on leukemic stem cell biology, clonogenic assays, and the cellular hierarchy of AML, with foundational contributions to understanding self-renewal programs in myeloid malignancies. Prof. Löwenberg has authored more than 500 peer-reviewed publications, received honorary doctorates from multiple European universities, and served on editorial boards of Blood, NEJM, and Leukemia. He is widely regarded as the dean of European AML clinical trial design.