Notable Outcomes & Events

Scientific events, social meet ups, publications and more

Progress with TRACC, To Train and Retain Academic Cancer Clinicians: September 2021

Since August 2020, our first cohort of MB-PhD students, who have taken three years out of their medical training to study for a PhD in cancer sciences (and who we call our 'four musketeers'!), have been working with their supervisors to set up and start their research projects both from home and in the labs. With COVID restrictions, this has been more challenging than usual, but the students have all coped extremely well and are beginning to learn the key skills they need to tackle their research questions. They have all recently successfully completed their first-year assessments, including presenting their projects to a group of fellow students and supervisors. Their projects are very varied. Lorna Stillie is studying the most common form of ovarian cancer and the role played a molecule called MAPK ('map-k'), which is often defective in cancer leading to uncontrolled growth. Mairi Treanor-Taylor is working on one of the main types of skin cancer - what drives its spread to other parts of the body and what therapies it might be vulnerable to. Both Ryan Devlin and Tian En Lim are focusing on the anti-tumour response of the immune system, which could be harnessed for new anti-cancer therapies. Ryan is investigating how immune cell production affects anti-tumour responses, while Tian En is using screening platforms to identify drugs that might promote these responses. We have also recruited three new students this year, who just started their projects in August and will be studying different aspects of bowel cancer, brain tumours, and head and neck cancer. Our two clinical research training fellows, who are further on in their specialist medical training, also started their research work this year. Both Sarah Derby and Alasdair Duguid are studying cancer stem cells – in resistance to radiation treatment in Sarah's case and in the context of leukaemia in Alasdair's.

Joint Edinburgh-Glasgow Introduction/Q&A Session: tbc

This session will provide introduction to and answer any questions about MB-PhD / BDS-PhD component of the joint Edinburgh-Glasgow Clinical Research Training Programme funded by CRUK. In 2023, the application deadline for MB-PhD / BDS-PhD positions is tbc.

Two fully funded PhD positions per year for highly motivated University of Glasgow MBChB or BDS students on completion of their intercalated BMedSci/BSc.

The MB-PhD / BDS-PhD programme has been designed to help develop the future leaders in cancer research by providing an early route to an academic career for highly promising students. This is part of the TRACC the joint Edinburgh - Glasgow clinical academic programme funded by Cancer Research UK, and involves significant cross-city co-operation. Successful candidates will be closely mentored by senior academic staff, will be placed into top research laboratories of their choice and will complete a three year PhD before returning back to fourth year of their MBChB or BDS course. Stipend will be provided.

Who is eligible to apply

Edinburgh & Glasgow University MBChB or BDS students currently in their intercalated BMedSci year (2022-2023)

Application deadline

tbc

Interviews

tbc

If you are interested in joining the Programme and would like to have an informal discussion you can contact one of Glasgow's TRACC Programme key contact people listed below.

For information on TRACC Programme key contact people in Edinburgh please visit: https://www.ed.ac.uk/cancer-centre/graduate-research-and-training/tracc-programme-for-clinicians

TRACC Programme key contact people in Glasgow: