Danny M. van Willigen

Leiden University Medical Center

Papers

4

Total Citations

93

H-Index

4

About

Danny M. van Willigen is a pioneering researcher in the field of fluorescence-guided surgery, with a focus on advancing intraoperative imaging for oncological and urological applications. His work centers on developing and validating multispectral fluorescence imaging techniques that enable real-time visualization of critical anatomical structures during minimally invasive procedures. Van Willigen’s major contributions include demonstrating the feasibility of multi-wavelength fluorescence imaging using the da Vinci Firefly platform, as detailed in his most-cited paper (41 citations), which provides a technical foundation for distinguishing tumors, lymphatics, and nerves simultaneously. He also developed a novel approach to separate healthy from disease-related lymphatic anatomy during robot-assisted laparoscopy (30 citations), significantly improving the precision of pelvic lymph node dissections in prostate cancer. Notably, van Willigen introduced a myelin protein-zero specific fluorescent tracer for intraoperative nerve visualization (11 citations), addressing the critical challenge of nerve-sparing surgery. His work on hybrid PSMA tracers for microdosing fluorescence imaging (11 citations) further bridges the gap between radioguided and fluorescence-guided surgery, showcasing his ability to translate innovative tracer technologies into practical clinical tools.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

4
H-Index
4
Papers
93
Total Citations
23
Avg Citations/Paper
🏆 Most Cited Paper
Multi-wavelength fluorescence imaging with a da Vinci Firefly—a technical look behind the scenes
41 citations · 2020
📈 Most Prolific Year: 2020 (1 Papers)
🤝 Key Collaborators: 23
🏛 Institutions: Leiden University Medical Center

Top Papers

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Key Collaborators

Contact & Links

Available for collaboration
Content generated · 13 days ago