Rasa Islam, Cartherics PhD Student

My research focuses on how to make adoptive immunotherapy more effective and readily available to cancer patients, particularly as an 'off-the-shelf' treatment module.

Hudson Institute is a very collaborative space and provides a lot of learning opportunities for students. This could be workshops and training sessions organised within the facility, presentations from local and global experts, networking events or student-specific events organised by Hudson Institute Student Society (HISS). Students can be involved in a range of programs ranging from mentorship, to fun trivia. There is a strong sense of community and encouragement to thrive for excellence!

Besides the state-of-the-art research facilities and training opportunities to develop myself as a researcher, I have also availed opportunities for personal leadership development. This year I have been elected as the Early Career Research Representative on the HISS committee. As part of my role, I have helped organise the first HISS virtual social event for the year and the upcoming late-PhD to ECR mentoring program. I was also involved in organising the Day of Immunology celebration at Hudson Institute, which unfortunately had to be cancelled due to COVID-19. I look forward to more such personal and professional leadership opportunities.

I hope to contribute to transforming cancer patients’ life expectancy and quality, regardless of type or stage of the condition.