Student Corner
Our PhD students are developing projects in different types and/or aspects of Blood Cancer. They generously gave up some of their very precious time to tell what brought them and their projects together, their experience and insights in what it takes to develop as a scientist, what they bring and get in return in the process.
Bryony Kennedy is a PhD student in Dr Lisa Crawford’s lab, and her project is co-supervised by Dr Rich Williams, she is in her 2nd year and works on myeloma, focusing on developing treatments with higher efficacy. Aine McGill, also in 2nd year, works under the supervision of Prof. Ken Mills, Prof. Kevin Prise and Dr. Lauren Cairns, and her project aims to develop kinder treatments for pediatric AML, to avoid or circumvent the serious side effects associated with therapy.
James Boncan is supervised by Prof. Ken Mills and Prof. Karen McCloskey and is studying the potential of using snake venom as an anticancer agent, specifically studying Precursor B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia.
Alexander Mutch investigates what happens before the manifestation of in Myeloid Dysplastic Leukaemia by understading what appears to be an initiating mutation in this disease, and is supervised Dr Katrina Lappin and Dr Kienan Savage. Both Alex and James are in the 1st year of their PhD.
Contributing students, from left to right: Bryony Kennedy, Alex Mutch, James Boncan and Aine McGill.
I knew I wanted to do a PhD but was not certain what kind of research topic I was looking for; I saw an advertisement for a project in Pediatric AML, and it felt personable. The main aim of my research is to develop kinder therapies. Basically test drugs that already exist and see if they can be repurposed, or used effectively to treat this disease. I don’t know if my work will ever make it to the clinic to benefit these patients specifically, but I know that through the process of drug repurposing I am identifying mechanisms of action that may actually help someone. Aine McGill
PhD student
I felt personal about the topic, I had a friend undergoing a stem cell transplant when I was doing my A levels, I became interested in that. I study Myeloma; there is a specific protein that promotes tumour cell growth, and my project is to find a drug that can inhibit that protein; some exist but once they are in the body they are rapidly metabolised, so get degraded, and we are trying to find a more stable compound that has a longer effect, so a more efficient drug. Bryony Kennedy
PhD student
I was always fascinated by science and scientists in white coats, and by doing a PhD in blood cancers followed my undergraduate project in AML, then my Masters in AML. I remember a lecture by Prof Ken Mills where he was contrasting blood cancers and solid cancers and at the time it just sparked my curiosity. Alex Mutch
PhD student
Similar to Alex, I too studied biology for my undergrad. At the end of my degree I wasn’t sure if a PhD was right for me. However, after starting a Master’s, I really enjoyed laboratory work and applied for a PhD focusing on exploring venom toxins as a tool for developing treatments for precursor-B cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. A leading cause of cancer-related death in children, some of the promising results from my research so far include, identification of a specific compound in snake venom that possesses anti-cancer activity whilst also being tolerated well. James Boncan
PhD student
Organization, resilience and be prepared to always be learning, even from negative results. Didn’t appreciate how much I would need maths. And planning. Everything needs to be in place – reagents need to be ordered or prepared in advance, remember to book equipment to make sure it is available, have the cells ready… lots of planning. I was surprised, however, at how flexible the work can be, and how much independence it gives you to manage your own time. Aine McGill
PhD student
Really lab experience is not what I find the most important… mostly be creative and be prepared to work hard. People underestimate how creative research work actually is. Alex Mutch
PhD student
Everyone works really hard, but I find myself constantly thinking about my project, on weekends or having dinner, think about an experiment. You need to be passionate about it. James Boncan
PhD student
I have learned a lot both in reading and lab work, such as analysing protein expression in cancer cells and seeing what effects certain drugs have on cancer which I have found very new and exciting. I have also learned a bit more chemistry which I came across in my A-levels so it was familiar. I think I came to understand that mistakes happen, you just need to understand why they have happened and look for guidance if you need it! Bryony Kennedy
PhD student
I didn’t know how one goes about setting up and analyzing big drug screens, so that’s something completely new that I learned (see figure below). There’s the technical and the analytical aspect of it which was completely new to me. Aine McGill
PhD student
I’ve enjoyed going to conferences; presenting, and owing my project has been rewarding. Also collaborating with other groups and universities, or meet people that are actually treating patients in the clinic and having something to offer that conversation. James Boncan
PhD student
I have only been working on my PhD for 5 months, and I only knew some basic theory in genetics, for example, so I had to learn everything as I go, convert that knowledge into actual experiments. I used new technologies like CRISPR to create cells with mutations, so it was quite rewarding to have created my own mutant cells, which will be my experimental model for the rest of my PhD, in this short amount of time. Alex Mutch
PhD student