Tumor Cell Biology - Carcinogenesis T32 Training Grant

The Carcinogenesis Training Program, funded by an Institutional National Research Service Award (NRSA) from the National Cancer Institute (NCI T32 CA009560), provides comprehensive laboratory research training to seven diverse predoctoral students per year in current principles of basic and translational cancer biology. The program promotes interdisciplinary interactions among students, postdoctoral fellows, clinicians and faculty scientists in oncology research, with complementary strengths in signal transduction, cell adhesion and motility, angiogenesis, viral oncogenesis, tumor microenvironment, therapeutic strategies, translational studies, chemoprevention, immunotherapy, metabolism, epigenetics and cancer genomics.

Program highlights include intensive research in progress meetings with program faculty, focused “nanocourses” in emerging cancer research fields, cross-disciplinary translational career and communication skills development, and additional funding for travel to scientific meetings and for laboratory supplies.

Competitive candidates for the program include students with an interdisciplinary interest in cancer biology who have matriculated into the Driskill Graduate Program (DGP), the Interdepartmental Biological Sciences Program (IBiS), the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), the Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program (NUIN), the Health Sciences Integrated Program (HSIP) and other PhD programs. Students are eligible to apply following selection of a participating thesis advisor and cancer research thesis topic. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and must first apply to DGP, IBiS or other appropriate graduate programs at Northwestern.

A request for nominations to fill available training positions is posted and sent to program preceptors each year in the spring, for appointments beginning in fall of the following year (eg, applications submitted in 2025 are considered for appointment in the fall of 2026, contingent upon successful completion of appropriate coursework and the PhD candidate qualifying exam).

Applications must include a letter of nomination from your thesis advisor, a Biosketch or CV, a statement describing your research project and its cancer relevance, and what you believe you can add to the training program by becoming part of the cohort. Please include your future career goals and a statement about your unique, diverse perspective. Applications are reviewed by the program steering committee and candidates are invited to interview in summer term. The program welcomes, encourages, and supports application by individuals from underrepresented groups and diverse backgrounds.

For additional information, contact Kathleen Green, PhD.

Program Directors

Kathleen Green, PhD

Program Director
Professor, Department of Pathology
Function and regulation of intercellular junctions in tumor progression

Vadim Backman, PhD

Program Co-Director
Sachs Family Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Medicine
Biophotonics, Computational Genomics, Modeling, and Cancer Biology

Jodi L. Johnson, PhD

Scientific Director
Basic and Translational Research Program Coordinator
Research Assistant Professor of Pathology, Dermatology, and Medical Social Sciences

Gina Kirsammer, PhD

Scientific Director
Research Assistant Professor of Medicine (Hematology and Oncology)

Program Preceptors

Mohamed Abazeed, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology

Sarki Abdulkadir, MD, PhD

Professor of Urology
Mechanisms of Prostate Cancer Initiation, Progress, and Treatment

Xiaomin Bao, PhD

Assistant Professor of Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and Dermatology
Molecular determinants of stemness

Issam Ben-Sahra, PhD

Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Tumor Metabolism

Marcelo Bonini, PhD

Professor of Medicine (Hematology and Oncology)
Association Between Redox Status and Tumor Cell Behavior with a Focus on Breast Cancer

Navdeep Chandel, PhD

Professor, Department of Medicine
Mitochondria signaling and cancer

Jaehyuk Choi, MD, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Molecular biology of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma

Weiguo Cui, PhD

Professor, Pathology (Experimental Pathology)

Lillian Eichner, PhD

Assistant Professor, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Deyu Fang, PhD

Professor of Pathology
Molecular Mechanisms in Immune Regulation, Inflammation, and Cancer

Daniel Foltz, PhD

Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Chromosome instability and cancer

Ruli Gao, PhD

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
High Throughput Single Cell DNA and RNA Sequencing to Study Cancer Heterogeneity

Cara Gottardi, PhD

Associate Professor, Medicine, Pulmonary Division
Regulation of catenin-dependent signaling and adhesion

Yogesh Goyal, PhD

Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology and McCormick School of Engineering
Theory, Computation, and Single-cell Analysis to Track Tumor Cell Plasticity and Fate Choices

Amy Heimberger, MD

Professor of Neurological Surgery
Elucidating Mechanisms of Tumor-mediated Immune Suppression in Neurological Cancers, Translational Research

Craig Horbinski, MD, PhD

Professor of Pathology/Neurological Surgery
Underlying Basis of Brain Cancer and How Molecular Diagnostics Could Enhance Patient Care

Luisa Iruela-Arispe, PhD

Professor and Chair of Cell and Developmental Biology
Morphogenesis and Homeostasis of Vasculature, Role of VEGF and Notch Signaling in Blood Vessels in Cancer

Julie Kim, PhD

Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Determining the Role of Sex Hormone Receptors in Endometrial and Breast Cancer

Laimonis Laimins, PhD

Professor and Chair, Department of Microbiology-Immunology
Human papillomaviruses and cancer

Monica Laronda, PhD

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Endocrinology)
Reproductive Biology, Endocrinology

Joshua Leonard, PhD

Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Approaches in Synthetic Biology, Protein Engineering, and Computational Biology to Develop Cancer Therapies

Huiping Liu, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Medicine
Molecular mechanisms of metastasis

Yan Liu, PhD

Associate Professor, Medicine (Hematology and Oncology)

Daniela Matei, MD

Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Defining Mechanisms Driving Ovarian Cancer Relapse and Metastasis

Joshua Meeks, MD, PhD

Edward M. Schaeffer, MD, PhD Professor of Urology
Associate Professor, Urology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Marcus Peter, PhD

Professor, Department of Medicine
Micro RNAs in cancer progression

Leonidas Platanias, MD, PhD

Professor, Department of Medicine
Cytokines and signal transduction pathways

Karla Satchell, PhD

Professor of Microbiology-Immunology
Secreted factors and immune regulation

Ali Shilatifard, PhD

Professor and Chair, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Epigenetics of hematologic malignancies

Vipul Shukla, PhD

Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology

Ronen Sumagin, PhD

Associate Professor of Pathology
Roles for Innate Immune Cells in Mucosal Inflammation and Anti-tumor Immunity

C. Shad Thaxton, MD PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Urology
Nanotechnology for cancer therapy

Theresa Walunas, PhD

Associate Professor of Internal Medicine
Improving Health for Patients Receiving Cancer Immunotherapy Using Immunological, Genomic, Informatics, and Implementation Science Methods

Sadie Wignall, PhD

Associate Professor of Molecular Biosciences
Studying Meiosis to Define Proper Chromosome Partitioning and Identifying Drug Targets to Block Cancer Cell Proliferation