Peter Jansen studied medicine and pharmacology at the University of Nijmegen. He spent 3 years as research fellow at the Albert Einstein College in New York. He has been head of the Hepatology and Gastroenterology Department of the University Medical Center in Groningen and currently is professor of Hepatology at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam.

Peter Jansen was Secretary General of EASL 1991-1993, Secretary General of UEGF 1994-1997 and Chairman of the Dutch Society of Hepatology 2001-2007. He has been associate editor of the Journal of Hepatology and editor-in-chief of Liver International.

Peter Jansen's clinical practice includes all fields of hepatology and his research focuses on basic aspects of genetic and acquired cholestatic liver disease, bile acid metabolism and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.