Olof Akre

Olof Akre

Professor/Senior Physician

Professor of Oncological Surgery at Karolinska Institutet Senior Consultant Urologist and Director of Research, Education, Development and Innovation at Karolinska University Hospital

Visiting address: D4:53, Eugeniavägen 3, 17164 Stockholm
Postal address: K1 Molekylär medicin och kirurgi, K1 MMK Urologi, 171 76 Stockholm
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About me

  • I am Professor of Oncological Surgery at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery (MMK) at Karolinska Institutet and Senior Consultant Urologist at Karolinska University Hospital. Since 2024, I also serve as Director of Research, Education, Innovation and Development at Karolinska University Hospital, where I lead strategic initiatives to strengthen the integration of research, education, innovation and healthcare.

    My research is driven by clinically relevant questions in prostate cancer and other urological malignancies. I use epidemiological methods, national quality registries, health data and molecular biomarkers to improve diagnosis, risk stratification, treatment selection and long-term outcomes. The overall aim is to generate evidence that supports personalised care and improved patient outcomes.

    Over the past two decades, I have led population-based clinical research and registry-based studies in close collaboration with national and international research networks. My work has also included the development of clinical trials, research infrastructure and doctoral education, with a particular interest in strengthening opportunities for clinician-scientists.

    As Director of Research, Education, Innovation and Development, I work to advance the university hospital's three core missions: patient care, research and education. My strategic priorities include simplifying research processes, expanding the use of health data and artificial intelligence, fostering innovation, and strengthening the academic culture and educational environment. I am particularly committed to promoting collaboration between Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital, recognising that a close partnership between academia and healthcare is essential for translating research into improved patient care.

    Alongside my leadership responsibilities, I continue to practise as a urological surgeon. My clinical work provides continuous inspiration for my research and helps ensure that it remains closely aligned with the needs of patients and the development of healthcare.

Research

  • Professor of Oncological Surgery and research group leader of the Urology Group at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery. 

Articles

All other publications

Grants

  • Mechanism of Association Between Childhood Psychiatric Disorder and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms
    Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2026 - 31 December 2028
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2026 - 31 December 2028
    This project explores the bidirectional relationship between psychiatric disorders (ADHD, OCD, anxiety) and urinary problems in children. We aim to: (1) identify genetic factors in neuroendocrine pathways contributing to this co-occurrence
    (2) determine how these genetic factors influence gene expression in relevant tissues
    and (3) track how these conditions develop over time and are affected by environmental factors.Spanning five years, this project brings together experts in urology, psychiatry, and genetics from Karolinska Institutet and Mount Sinai. We will analyze data from Swedish registers, international cohorts (All of Us, ABCD Study), and Swedish Twin Registry. The first two years will focus on genetic analysis, the third year on gene expression, and the final two years on developmental trajectories and data integration. The project employs pathway-specific genetic risk scores, sex-stratified analyses, and longitudinal modeling.This research reframes urinary symptoms as potential markers of broader neuroendocrine dysfunction affecting both body and brain. By understanding how stress-response systems connect these conditions, we can identify children at highest risk and determine optimal timing for intervention. This approach targeting shared biological mechanisms will improve outcomes for these vulnerable children.
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2025 - 31 December 2025
  • Swedish Cancer Society
    1 January 2023
    A main problem in the treatment of prostate cancer is that today's investigations do not identify who has a disease requiring treatment, which leads to extensive over- and under-treatment. We need better prognostic markers to better tailor treatments to patients. The problem is that prostate cancer often grows slowly and it is difficult to study prognosis over a long period of time. Therefore, we have used the National Prostate Cancer Registry to follow up 140,000 men for up to 20 years and were able to identify 1,500 men (cases) who died of their prostate cancer and 1,500 control subjects. We have requisitioned the diagnostic pathology slides of the cases and controls, scanned and reviewed them using modern guidelines. We have then extracted genetic material from the tissue from the biopsy samples and shown in pilot studies that genetic material can be studied in such old tissue. Now, throughout the material, we will identify molecular markers in the genome that can provide prognostic information. We will also use artificial intelligence to 'train' computers to recognize patterns in the pathology images associated with death. We then use mathematical models to develop a model that better distinguishes high-risk men from low-risk men. The aim of the project is to develop a new prognostic tool so that we can give the right treatment to the right patient. If we succeed in finding better prognostic markers, then with the help of the patient's various tumor data, we will be able to make a more accurate prediction of the risk of an individual patient dying from the disease during a certain period of time, and thus it will be easier to advise the patient on which treatment strategy is most suitable .
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2022 - 31 December 2024
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 December 2017 - 31 December 2018
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2014 - 31 December 2018
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2013 - 31 December 2015
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2010 - 31 December 2012
  • Swedish Research Council
    1 January 2008 - 31 December 2012

Employments

  • Professor/Senior Physician, Oncological Surgery, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, 2023-
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, 2016-2023

Degrees and Education

  • Docent, Karolinska Institutet, 2005
  • Doctor Of Philosophy, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, 1999

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