PhD Studentship: Patient-derived Cancer Models to Identify Novel Biomarkers and Treatment Targets in Patients with Prostate Cancer

Award Summary

100% of home tuition fees and annual living expenses of £17,668

Overview

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common cancer among men in the UK with >50,000 new cases and >12,000 cancer-associated deaths annually. Patients typically present with localised disease but eventually develop metastasis or present with synchronous metastatic disease. Molecular drivers of progression remain insufficiently understood and molecular biomarkers as biology-related treatment targets are an unmet need.

Are you interested in making a difference and working out which treatments are better for individual patients? This PhD project is focused on the establishment of novel cutting-edge patient-derived modelling techniques to identify predictive biomarkers as putative therapeutic targets to define novel concepts of synthetic lethality for biology-driven tailored treatments.

Aligned with Newcastle University Cancer Centre’s focus, drug target and biomarker discovery, the project will provide an opportunity to develop skills in a variety of biomedical techniques ranging from clinical sample processing and patient-derived models to molecular biology along with project management skills, including data interpretation, analysis and problem solving. HTA compliance training will be provided and the student will acquire a Clinical Research Passport, supervised by Dr Christoph Oing. This will enable the student to engage with the clinical data collection and interpretation of data alongside clinical endpoints. The student will be encouraged to actively engage in regular group meetings and attend conferences to develop scientific communication skills.

Number Of Awards

1

Start Date

24 April 2023

Award Duration

4 years

Application Closing Date

5 April 2023

Sponsor

Newcastle University Academic Track Scheme (NUAcT)

Supervisors

Christoph Oing, MD PhD

Luke Gaughan, PhD

Prof Craig Robson

Eligibility Criteria

You must have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2:1 honours degree or international equivalent, in a subject relating to biomedical sciences, including biochemistry and physiology. Further qualification such as an MRes is advantageous.

This award is available to home and international applicants. Successful international candidates will be required to make up the difference between the home fees and international fees. Eligible candidates domiciled in the EU will be considered automatically for a Vice-Chancellor’s EU Research Scholarship award as part of their degree programme application.

English Language requirements: IELTS 6.5 overall, with 5.5 or more in each sub-skill.

How To Apply

You must apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal.    

In the ‘Course choice’ tab:

• select ‘Postgraduate Research’ in the 'Type of Study' field
• select ‘Full Time’ in the ‘Mode of Study’ field
• select ‘2023’ in the ‘Year of Entry’ field
• enter programme code 8440F in the ‘Course Title’ field
• leave the ‘Research Area’ field blank
• press ‘Search’
• Select ‘PhD Translational and Clinical Research (FT)’
• Save selection

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:

• a ‘Personal Statement’ (this is a mandatory field) - upload a document or write a statement directly in to the application form
• the studentship code TC062 in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field
• when prompted for how you are providing your research proposal - select ‘Write Proposal’. You should then type in the title of the research project from this advert. You do not need to upload a research proposal.

Contact Details

christoph.oing@newcastle.ac.uk

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