Professor Jonas Nilsson trained as molecular biologist at Umeå University, Sweden, and as a tumor biologist during his postdoc at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN. After returning to Sweden he started a lab in Umeå before moving to Sahlgrenska Cancer Center at University of Gothenburg 2011. Here he founded the Sahlgrenska Translational Melanoma Group together with clinicians at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital. He was a Fellow of the Swedish Cancer Society from 2007-2020 during which he became Full Professor in Experimental Cancer Surgery 2015. He received the prestigious Fernström award for young scientists 2015 and became the Director of Sahlgrenska Cancer Center 2018. From November of 2020 he is the inaugural Chair of Melanoma Discovery at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research (UWA Centre of Medical Research). Professor Nilsson has authored around 80 publications, many of which in leading journals.

Professor Nilsson’s group aims to identify new treatment options for melanoma patients based on translational and clinical research, with a special interest in eye (or uveal) melanoma. Focus lies on further the understanding of the genetics of melanoma and creating humanized animal models of metastatic skin and uveal melanoma (PDX) for use in translational research. A major interest is also to see the discoveries translated into investigator-initiated clinical trials. In Sweden, Professor Nilsson manages the translational effort of the SCANDIUM and the PEMDAC clinical trials for uveal melanoma patients. The aim is to also develop new therapies for patients with melanoma in WA.