Profile

In 2022, I completed a PhD researching the role of a hormone in pancreatic cancer at the University of Sheffield. Following this, I took on a role as a postdoctoral research associate at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre (University of Manchester) where I am currently working. My current project involves investigating the mechanism of a drug named tolinapant in cervical cancer cells that have been extracted from patient tumours. Additionally, I am involved in a clinical trial where this drug is being tested on patients with cervical cancer to see if it improves their response to treatment that is used as standard practice in these patients. My role in this is to collect blood samples and process/store them. Most of my work involves working in a lab. However, part of the role is also writing papers about my research for online publication, writing grants for research funding and running seminars/lectures. I also supervise work experience/undergraduate/masters and PhD students throughout the year.

From 9am, I start off by checking emails and checking for any meetings I have scheduled on that day. This is followed by writing a brief plan of the days lab work. I usually start lab work around 10am and finish anywhere between 17.30-19.00. I normally take a 30 minute lunch break with my colleague. As lab experiments tend to have different running times and meetings can sometimes disrupt your workflow, I don’t have a set time for my lunch, I just have it whenever I can fit it in. I always make sure I take this time to unwind from work, so I can go back into the lab feeling refreshed. Additionally, working as a postdoctoral research scientist, you sometimes continue working at home if you have presentations to prepare for or writing that you haven’t managed to complete in the day. My Fridays tend to me structured slightly differently as I like to dedicate half of my day to data analysis so I can plan for the week ahead.