My lab is working in the field of metals in medicine, designing new treatments and ways of delivering these treatments with control, using physical activation methods like light and ultrasound.
A colleague of mine first mentioned the CBTDDC, and I was excited to get involved because I felt this sort of joined-up multidisciplinary approach is exactly what is needed for tackling paediatric brain tumours.
I went to the first CBTDDC workshop in London, and met a PhD student who took a short postdoc with me and now works with my collaborator, Dr Alex Bullock, on diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). So the workshop was crucial in starting my group’s work in the field of paediatric oncology.
I am looking forward to the CBTDDC's Edinburgh workshop in February 2020. I'm hoping to present some ideas which, if funded, would help us to generate preliminary data to secure larger longer grants to build our research team developing new treatments for paediatric brain tumours.
I think chemists have a clear, central role to play in designing and developing new treatments and delivery methods, working closely with other scientists including biologists, oncologists, immunologists, engineers and clinicians. This is something the CBTDDC is helping us to do.
My research group is highly motivated to keep working in this field, with the aim of providing a wider range of targeted, gentler treatment choices for children and their families.