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Cornelis Schroder was born in Amsterdam and spent his formative years in Jordaan, a neighbourhood of Amsterdam noted for its narrow alleys and canals as well as its bustling activity.

He studied medicine at the VU University of Amsterdam. After a short stay at Zaandam, he moved to Nijmegen. There, during his residency in paediatrics, he became interested in Alport’s syndrome and wrote his thesis on this topic in 1986. This disease remained an interest of his throughout his medical career.

After working in neonatology, he matriculated to paediatric nephrology. His goal in this field was to improve peritoneal dialysis, and his technical abilities (his hobby was to repair old motor cars) made him exceptionally well suited for this task. He enjoyed developing new technical approaches to peritoneal dialysis and made major contributions to peritoneal dialysis throughout his career, publishing 75 manuscripts, the last being in 2012. The last thesis on peritoneal dialysis under his supervision was defended in April 2012 (“Peritoneal dialysis in children. Pathophysiological and clinical studies” by R. Raaijmakers). He also made significant contributions to the European Paediatric Peritoneal Dialysis working group.

He was a thoughtful and careful clinician who developed many protocols for the treatment of patients. In addition to his clinical work, he also enhanced the lives of his patients by volunteering at Kidney Kids Camps.

In 1999 he became full professor of paediatric nephrology at the University of Utrecht. He subsequently became Chair of the Department of Paediatrics in Apeldoorn. His talent for teaching and organization flourished. The residents admired him, and he received an award for his teaching abilities by the students of Utrecht University.

In addition to his work, Cornelis loved Egyptian art and French abbeys.

He is survived by Wulfhild, his devoted wife. He will be missed by his colleagues and friends.