Dr. Peng established his research group at the Princess Máxima Center in 2020, where he initiated the childhood liver cancer research program. He currently serves as the research chair for the Princess Máxima Center Comprehensive Childhood Cancer Center (M4C) Liver Tumor Group, leading efforts to advance research on pediatric liver tumors and develop innovative therapeutic strategies.
His research focuses on understanding the origins, development, and heterogeneity of pediatric liver tumors, with an emphasis on translating these findings into novel therapeutic strategies to improve patient outcomes. His team has extensively employed single-cell omics technologies to characterize tumor heterogeneity and identify new therapeutic targets. They leverage organoid technology to develop novel therapeutics, including small molecule inhibitors, RNA therapeutics, antibodies, and engineered immune cells.
A key achievement of his group has been the development of advanced preclinical models for hepatoblastoma (Kluiver, Lu et al., Nature Communications, 2024). These efforts have directly contributed to the design of the international clinical study 'SIOPEL Explorer', led by co-applicant Dr. József Zsiros, investigating a new combination therapy in high-risk metastatic hepatoblastoma patients, aiming to improve treatment efficacy and outcomes.
The lab has received funding from prestigious organizations, including KiKa (Dutch Foundation for Cancer-Free Children), the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF), and the KiTZ-Máxima twinning program. His lab has also contributed to the development of pediatric liver tumor organoid models for the ITCC-P4 Consortium and the Dutch ONCODE Accelerator Foundation.
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