Melanie Seaton

What is your background?

My undergraduate course was an integrated Master’s degree in Pharmacology at the University of Manchester.

Who do you work / collaborate with?

I have a fantastic supervisory team who cover the various different aspects of my project. My main supervisor is Christine Schmidt, who is my day-to-day contact and the mind responsible for the idea of using sperm to cure cancer! I also have three co-supervisors: Richard Edmondson, a surgeon at Saint Mary’s Hospital who I work with to collect fallopian tube fluid samples from patients; Stephen Taylor, who will be providing expertise on and access to relevant cell cultures further along in my project; and Daniel Brison, the scientific director for the IVF clinic which provides me with sperm samples.

Additionally, I’ll be collaborating with Oliver Schmidt’s lab in Dresden who will provide sperm caps to aid with targeting sperm to lesions, and have already collaborated with Igor Larossa’s chemistry lab in Manchester who have synthesised and provided me with fluorescent chemotherapeutic drugs. So basically… quite a lot of people!

Who is your PhD funded by?

My PhD is funded by the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, which in itself is a collaboration between the University, Cancer Research UK and The Christie.

Where is your PhD based?

I am mostly based at the Oglesby Cancer Research Building, but I spend significant amounts of time at Saint Mary’s Hospital, collecting samples from the IVF clinic at Old Saint Mary’s, using the histology labs in AV Hill and using the bioimaging facilities at Michael Smith and Alderley Park… so I’m never stuck in one place for too long!

Why did you apply to the MCRC PhD scheme?

While researching potential PhD courses I found that the MCRC had their own PhD scheme and applied right away. The collaboration between the University, Cancer Research UK and The Christie really appealed to me as an organisation clearly focused on patient outcomes.

What do you love most about working with the MCRC?

I think there’s a real sense of community in the organisation. The Oglesby Cancer Research Building is full of brilliant, hard-working and friendly researchers, who not only are passionate about their own work but love hearing about each other’s projects too! It’s a very supportive environment and everyone is always willing to help each other out.

What have been your proudest moments so far?

Successfully using any technique for the first time is always a huge moment for me. Some examples include my first time getting a patient sample from an operating theatre, successfully dissecting the oviducts from a mouse and loading chemotherapeutic drugs into sperm!

What roles and responsibilities do you have outside of your core PhD research?

I am part of the Researcher Representative team which has recently been set up to communicate the needs of researchers to the senior leadership team. This team represents all researchers in the division, including PhD students. I’ve also recently taken on the role of co-chair of the Doctoral Academy Graduate Society which is a society for PhD students in the faculty.

What opportunities has the MCRC provided you with?

The collaborative environment has meant as well as having access to, for example, state-of-the-art bioimaging equipment, I’ve also been able to go into the operating theatre to collect samples from patients, accessed the University’s animal facilities for my in situ work, and had other opportunities outside the lab such as a free trip to London to an event for Cancer Research UK PhD students.

What is it like working with your supervisor and team?

My main supervisor is really passionate about my project, always full of ideas and very supportive. Most importantly she’s on hand to help when I need her! I have less contact with my co-supervisors, but they are always just an email away if I need answers to any questions or want to discuss my project. While they don’t work on my project, I consider the other members of my lab part of my “team” too – good friends who support you are absolutely essential if you’re doing a PhD!

What support have you received whilst at the MCRC?

Apart from the obvious (and generous) financial support, my supervisory team and advisor have been hugely supportive of my project, both in the long-term and in the day-to-day running of experiments. As well as this, the Doctoral Academy are always keeping in touch about events and opportunities for PhD students and offer lots of helpful general advice and support.

What do you hope to achieve whilst at the MCRC?

My main goals while I’m here are to publish papers I can be proud of, and to present my work at a conference.

What are your plans/aspirations after your PhD?

I’m not 100% sure yet but I know there will be a lot of options open to me. Continuing in academic research appeals to me but I know this isn’t necessarily for everyone and there may be opportunities available to me that I’m not even aware of yet. Luckily the Careers team are on hand to help with this when I need to start making some decisions!