Cell adhesion and -communication within the context of vascular tissue and bone marrow (BM) has been my major scientific interest. In current projects, I study cell communication within the BM metastatic niche in Neuroblastoma (NB) – a childhood cancer originating from the sympathetic nervous system – as recurrences in BM are a major obstacle to cure. The microenvironment of the BM appears to possess unique protective features. BM-residing Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs), for example, have been shown to be instructed by tumor cells to support them. We therefore aim to unravel which MSCs support tumor cells in BM and how we can block the MSC-tumor dialog to sensitize metastasized tumor cells for therapy. In close collaboration with Sanquin, we also aim to capture metastasis-related changes within BM-residing tumor cells, hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (in the context of stem cell transplantation) and T cells (for potential development of adoptive cell therapy). Ultimately, our studies might open up new avenues for therapeutic approaches, specifically targeting metastasized tumor cells and the support they receive from the BM microenvironment.