Post-Doctoral Research Associate

About the role:

Currently, over 11,000 men die of prostate cancer (PCa) every year in the UK, and more specifically they die from the lethal, metastatic stage of the disease which has become resistant to our existing arsenal of systemic therapies. The post is to support a PCUK-funded project investigating mechanisms of the abscopal effect in prostate cancer – the effect that treating the primary tumour may have on secondary tumours. Our hypothesis is that metastatic tumour therapy response is significantly determined by the bidirectional signalling cross-talk between the primary tumour and metastatic niche via circulating factors, which in turn determines overall tumour response to therapy and cancer outcome.

This is a highly collaborative project involving teams in Cancer, Urology, as well as Oncology, Interventional Radiology and national and international collaborators. The postholder will form part of a small team using cutting-edge technologies to examine different aspects of the abscopal effect, including advanced next-generation sequencing techniques. There is also a project management component. Importantly they will liaise with the tissue bank and surgical team to facilitate the collection and processing of consented patient samples. 

The project is led by Professor Charlotte Bevan, Professor of Cancer Biology.

What you would be doing:

You will carry out research programmes and undertake project management tasks.

• You will conduct and plan your own scientific work with appropriate supervision 
• You will appropriately process and store clinical samples 
• You will be proactive in liaising with clinical and nursing colleagues for the collection of clinical samples  
• You will have a knowledge and abide by conditions of the ethical approvals obtained in relation to this programme of work 
• To work closely with other team members and maintain effective lines of communication with all team members 

What we are looking for:

The candidate should have a PhD in molecular or cell biology, or a closely related discipline, or equivalent research, industrial or commercial experience. The candidate is expected to have a good track record of self-driven research work (either independent or under indirect supervision), excellent verbal and written communication skills, and ideally, experience working in a healthcare research setting.

What we can offer you:

You will be part of a multi-disciplinary team of senior academics, clinical and non-clinical researchers, and PhD students. You will have the opportunity to participate in regular lab meetings, departmental research meetings, and supervise research students.

You will gain interdisciplinary research experience in cancer multi-omics, bioinformatics, and artificial intelligence; can present at national and international conferences; and prepare manuscripts as first or joint author for submission to leading journals and conferences in machine learning, cancer research and radiology.

Further Information

The position will be hosted at the Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London at the Hammersmith campus.

*Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant within the salary range £43,863 - £47,223 per annum.

The duration of the post is two years. The expected starting date is 1^st October 2025.

If you require any further details about the role, please contact: Professor Charlotte Bevan – charlotte.bevan@imperial.ac.uk

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