Research

I have set up a research team devoted to cancer genetic studies and biomarker development, in particular in male urological cancers. The mission of the research team is to reduce mortality and morbidity of cancer patients by understanding cancer development and progression mechanisms and facilitating precision medicine through the development of efficient cancer detection, prognostic and treatment response prediction/monitoring biomarkers.

Our past work has been mainly focused on identification of genetic alterations and genetic mechanisms in cancer development, progression and therapeutic response. Recently, our research work moved into circulation biomarker development, including CTCs, exosome and other cells, for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and prediction/monitoring of cancer progression and therapeutic response.

There are currently two main research areas of interest:

• Biomarker discovery and clinical applications, focusing on circulating biomarkers (CTCs, exosomes and other cancer associated circulating cells) for cancer diagnosis, prognosis and prediction/monitoring of cancer progression and therapeutic response.
• Mechanisms of prostate cancer metastasis and therapeutic resistance.

Other Activities

• Senior Editor: American Journal of Cancer Research
• Editorial Board Member: The Open Breast Cancer Journal
• Editorial Board Member: Journal of Cancer Research Updates
• Scientific assessment committee member: France national cancer research programme Canceropole (2007-2014)
• Research grant reviewer for funding bodies, such as British Medical Research Council (MRC), British National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), UK Prostate Action, Prostate Cancer Research Charity, National Cancer Institute of France, International Association of Cancer Research, Hong Kong Research Grants Council
• Referee of scientific journals such as Oncogene, J Path, Gene Chromosome Cancer, Br J Cancer, International J Cancer, Carcinogenesis, PloS One, BMC Cancer, Histopathology, Clinical Cancer Research and America Journal of Pathology
• Member of prostate cancer ICGC consortium
  Member of PRACTICAL prostate cancer predisposition study international consortium
• Active Member of American Association for Cancer Research
• Honorable Professor, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China
• Honorable Professor, Naning Medical University, China
• Visiting Professor, Zhengzhou University Medical College, China

Major Funding

• 2021-2026 - Prostate Cancer UK, 'Circulating tumour cells as biomarkers for treatment stratification of localised prostate cancer,' £749,527 (Co-PI)
• 2019-2020- CRUK Cancer Early Detection Primer award, 'Exploring platelet miRNA as a novel cost-effective non-invasive liquid biopsy approach to improve prostate cancer diagnosis,' £97,242
• 2017-2021- Angle Europe PLC, "The prognostic value of circulating megakaryocytes for cancer patients" £278,000
• 2015-2021- The Orchid Cancer Appeal, "Circulating tumour cell study and biomarker identification in prostate cancer" £750,000
• 2008-2011- Medical Research Council, Associated genes in prostate cancer, £303,225
  
  

Recent Publications

Polygenic hazard score is associated with prostate cancer in multi-ethnic populations Huynh-Le MP, Fan CC, Karunamuni R et al. Nature Communications (2021) 12(7)

Jet energy scale and resolution measured in proton–proton collisions at √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. European Physical Journal C (2021) 81(7)

Measurement of single top-quark production in association with a W boson in the single-lepton channel at √s=8TeV with the ATLAS detector Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. European Physical Journal C (2021) 81(7)

Measurements of sensor radiation damage in the ATLAS inner detector using leakage currents Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. Journal of Instrumentation (2021) 16(7)

Measurements of the inclusive and differential production cross sections of a top-quark–antiquark pair in association with a Z boson at √s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. European Physical Journal C (2021) 81(7)

Muon reconstruction and identification efficiency in ATLAS using the full Run 2 pp collision data set at s=13 TeV Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. European Physical Journal C (2021) 81(10) 578

A search for the decays of stopped long-lived particles at √s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. Journal of High Energy Physics (2021) 2021(7)

Determination of the parton distribution functions of the proton from ATLAS measurements of differential W^± and Z boson production in association with jets Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. Journal of High Energy Physics (2021) 2021(7)

Measurements of differential cross-sections in four-lepton events in 13 TeV proton-proton collisions with the ATLAS detector Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. Journal of High Energy Physics (2021) 2021(7)

Performance of the ATLAS RPC detector and Level-1 muon barrel trigger at √s = 13 TeV Aad G, Abbott B, Abbott DC et al. Journal of Instrumentation (2021) 16(7)

Team

Postdoctoral Researchers
Xueying Mao, Elzbieta Stankiewicz

PhD Students
Tanyu Guo, Caitlin Davis, Yeuzhou Zhang

Research Technician
Edwina Burke

Biography

Education