IIT external seminar | Professor Alan Melcher

Our next IIT external seminar is on the 12^th of January - face to face at the Pears, plus virtually via Teams.  

Professor Alan Melcher from The Institute of Cancer Research, is speaking on Thursday, 12^th of January at midday at the IIT external seminar series in the Pears building. All are welcome, details below: 

Title                    “Oncolytic viruses as a platform for cancer immunotherapy” 

Date                  – Thursday 12^th of January 2023

Speaker            – Professor Alan Melcher, The Institute of Cancer Research.

Host                  – Steve Ley

Time                  – 12:00 Seminar 

Location           – Pears building Seminar room 207 plus virtual over teams.

                          – 13:00 lunch meeting with PhD students/postdocs/technicians 

                          – 14:00 meeting with PIs (please arrange via Steve/Hanh)

                          – 17:00 drinks reception  

Summary of the Speaker’s work:   

Professor Melcher is a clinician scientist, and currently Professor of Translational Immunotherapy at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Honorary Consultant Oncologist at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. He graduated in medicine from the University of Oxford and trained in Clinical Oncology (Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy) in Cardiff, London and Leeds. Following completion of his PhD at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now Cancer Research UK) in London, he was a post-doctoral research fellow at the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, before returning to the UK, where in 2007 he became Professor of Clinical Oncology and Biotherapy at Leeds, before moving to London in 2016.

Professor Melcher’s laboratory and translational research is focused on oncolytic viruses, radiotherapy and immunotherapy for the treatment of cancer. He and his team are investigating how to improve the ability of oncolytic viruses to trigger immunogenic cell death in tumours. They are also working on how radiotherapy treatment of tumours impacts on the immune system and anti-tumour immunity, in patients as well as pre-clinical model systems.  These studies are designed to help us develop a more scientifically-informed, rational approach to combination immunotherapy strategies for testing in patients. 

One-on-one meetings with the speaker can be organised via Steve Ley/Hanh (h.gurr@ucl.ac.uk).

PhD students and post-docs are encouraged to attend the lunch with the speaker following the seminar, please email Hanh (h.gurr@ucl.ac.uk) if you would like to attend.