Mentorship Spotlight: Mala Carys

What is your background?

I have a BSc in Molecular Biology from The University of Manchester and an MRes in Molecular Oncology from The University of Liverpool. I’m now studying a Non-Clinical PhD through the Manchester Cancer Research Centre.

It was during my A-Levels that I first started thinking about applying for a PhD. A female teacher who had a doctorate spoke to me about what being a scientist was like. I was then fortunate enough to do a Nuffield Research Placement – an eight-week project at the University of Bangor. During this time, I shadowed a PhD student and got to see what it was like working in a laboratory.

In my undergraduate degree, I also did a placement year at the University of L’Aquila in Italy. I worked on a research project looking at breast cancer dormancy, as breast cancer often metastasizes to the bone. Both experiences motivated me to do a PhD in cancer and carry out my own research.

What is the aim of your research?

Previous research has already found that certain proteins called transcription factors are crucial in activating the development of cancer. These transcription factors can ‘turn on’ genes that lead to cancerous cellular behaviour. However, the activation or ‘turning on’ of genes is only one side of the coin. There is still little understanding about the transcription factors that repress or ‘turn off’ gene expression and stop the development of oesophageal cancer.

I’m working with my supervisor, Professor Andrew Sharrocks, to determine how a particular family of transcription factors called ‘ETS transcription factors’ could turn off gene expression in oesophageal cancer.

If we understand how gene expression can be turned on and off, this will hopefully lead to a clearer understanding of how oesophageal cancer develops and help us develop better treatments for patients in the future.

What does your typical day look like?

A lot of my time is spent in the lab carrying out experiments that are linked to my research. Right now, I’m using an antibody-based technology called ChIP to understand where the repressor protein binds along the DNA helix. This information will help me learn how the repressor protein works in oesophageal cancer and which genes they can potentially ‘turn off’.

Do you have any roles and responsibilities outside of your PhD?

Outside of my PhD, I’ve been a Cancer Sciences Postgraduate Mentor. In this role I helped and advised an undergraduate student at The University of Manchester who was thinking about studying a Cancer Sciences PhD in the future.

I was assigned a student to mentor, and we met up a couple of times a month. During these meetings I’d answer any questions she had about the PhD journey. We’d talk about things like applying for summer placements to develop her CV, how to develop her career pathway by doing a Master’s, what it’s like to do a PhD, and how I found my studentship.

I’d also invite her to seminars that I thought she’d find interesting, and organised a two-day lab placement so she could see what it was like to work in a lab and gain experience to help with her future PhD applications.

Why did you want to be a MAHSC mentor?

I am passionate about encouraging more people from minority backgrounds, whatever that minority, into academia. The mentoring programme really aligns with my beliefs on diversifying academia and is a great way of helping to demystify the whole process of applying for and studying a PhD, so I was keen to get involved.

What’s the most rewarding part of the role?

Seeing my mentee grow in confidence was incredibly rewarding. It was wonderful to watch her excitement for research grow, from when we first visited a cell culture room at the Michael Smith Building, to doing a western blot experiment with me during the two-day lab placement. By the end of the programme, she’d started to develop her own research interests and had confirmed she wanted to do a PhD.

I’ve learnt a lot from being a mentor too and even though my role has finished I’m still in touch with my mentee and try to offer her guidance when I can. I’ll definitely apply to the programme again this year.

Do you have any advice for people considering being a mentor?

It’s important to be your authentic self. Pass on your excitement for research and share knowledge about the whole PhD application process with your mentee.

Apply to become a Cancer Postgraduate Mentee

Are you a final or penultimate year Master’s studying at The University of Manchester? Are you considering doing a PhD in the future? Why not apply to be mentored by a current cancer-focused PhD student?

We’ll match you with a current PhD student who’ll meet with you once a month, help you prepare for your next steps in academia and share their advice on how to navigate the process of becoming a cancer postgraduate researcher.

You’ll also get the chance to visit your mentor’s lab group in the summer for up to two days and see what it’s like to work in a state-of-the-art laboratory. We’ll pay you for the summer visit at the rate of £11.68/hour (+ reimbursement of expenses, including travel).

Complete our short application form to apply before Monday 22nd April (12:00).