Claire Perks completed her PhD from the University of Bristol in 1995, in which she studied ‘The Role of the IGF axis in the Ovary’ in relation to fertility. She then continued these studies as a Postdoctoral Research Scientist at The Royal Veterinary College, University of London before joining the University of Bristol as a Research Associate. Claire is currently an Associate Professor in Tumour Cell Biology and leads the Cancer Endocrinology group based at Southmead Hospital.

Rachel Barker completed her PhD at the University of Bristol in 2010, in which she studied the role of the plasminogen system in Alzheimer’s disease. She continued to work at Bristol as a post-doctoral research assistant in dementia research until 2013. Following a career break, Rachel returned to the University of Bristol in 2018 and began her research into prostate cancer. Rachel is currently a Prostate Cancer UK Research Fellow and is investigating the crosstalk between Alzheimer’s disease and prostate cancer.

Omar Alomair received his B.A. in Pharmacy for King Saud University at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2009. He embarked on his first research journey in 2011, at the university of Alberta, investigating the effect of oxidative stress on cellular communication. Omar is exploring the role of glucose regulated protein 78 (GRP78) in colorectal cancer development in relation to the IGFs-axis. In his free time, he enjoys working out, reading, and tinkering with electronics.

Abigail Harland did both her undergraduate and Masters degrees in Biochemistry at the University of Bristol. Her PhD project focusses on understanding the mechanisms underpinning Glioblastoma; particularly those affecting cancer stem cells. She is currently investigating how manipulating IGFBP-2 may impact the maintenance of stem cells isolated from primary tumours.

Mai Alhadrami received her BSc in Laboratory Medicine at Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia in 2012. After two years clinical experience at a hospital, Mai moved to the USA to pursue a Masters degree in Tumour Biology at Georgetown University, Washington D.C, USA in 2018. Mai's PhD project focusses on the crosstalk between Alzheimer's Disease and cancer by studying the role of amyloid precursor protein (APP) processing in proliferation of prostate cancer cells.

Xiaoyu Su joined the Cancer Endocrinology Group as a PhD student in 2021. Her project is focussed on the role of Estrogen Receptor-β and cholesterol in colorectal cancer.

Emily Gill received her undergraduate degree in Biomedical Sciences in 2015 from Northumbria University before completing her Masters degree in health sciences research at the University of Bristol in 2020. Emily's PhD project focusses on identifying novel links between type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cancer.

Haonan Li completed his Masters degree in the Cancer Endocrinology Group in 2022 investigating the role of GRP78 and IGFBP-2 in breast cancer. He is now a PhD student and his project is focussed on repurposing drugs for the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer. In his free time, he enjoys travelling, working out and reading.

Alfie Chambers received his BSc in Biomedical Sciences from University College London in 2020. The following year, he completed his MRes Cancer Biology degree from Imperial College London, in which he investigated resistance mechanisms targeting CDK7 inhibitors in ER+ breast cancer. Alfie now works as a research technician, developing a prostate cancer biobank and exploring potential gene targets within these samples.
He also makes really over the top spreadsheets on overcrowded freezers, which are AWESOME!

Omar Alkahtani received his BSc in Clinical Laboratory Sciences from King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2013. Omar then obtained a Master’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA in 2021. Omar’s PhD research focuses on the metabolic disturbances in breast cancer and the potential role of PLEKHS1 in this process.‌