My name is Aanchal and I’m from Mumbai, India. I was always passionate about cellular biology and therapeutics, so in 2020 I moved to Dundee to pursue a master’s in Biomedical and Molecular sciences at the University. Towards the end of my master’s, I knew I wanted a career in cancer research, focussing on targeted anti-cancer therapy. I was incredibly grateful to have been offered this studentship by the NCC Doctoral Training Programme in Precision Cancer Medicine under the supervision of Dr Adrian Saurin and Prof Russell Petty.
My PhD project was focussed on understanding the mechanisms of an anti-cancer drug called CDK4/6 inhibitors. These drugs have been successfully used to treat a common subtype of breast cancer, but unfortunately, patients eventually succumb to the disease. An essential part of this project was to investigate how these drugs affected tumour growth and how tumour cells become resistant to the treatment. We believe that the findings of this project might help understand more about these drugs and help improve patient outcomes.
I can’t thank the Ninewells Cancer Campaign enough for funding this incredible project and for giving me an opportunity to be working on a project that I am so passionate about. This studentship gave me the opportunity to collaborate and work with leading scientists and engage in many public engagement activities. I hope Ninewells Cancer Campaign continues to support many more young scientists.”
I am truly grateful to the Ninewells Cancer Campaign for its support and for giving me an opportunity to be working on a project that I am passionate about, and which will hopefully have a clinical impact.
