Laura is a postdoctoral researcher in the Cancer Theme at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) in Adelaide. Laura graduated from the University of Adelaide with a Bachelor of Science (Biomed) and first class Honours in 2006 and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Medicine in 2013. Laura’s thesis received a Dean’s Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence and her PhD studies made significant contributions to understanding the impact of cellular drug transporters on the efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (eg: imatinib) used to treat chronic myeloid leukaemia. Most recently Laura’s research highlighted the clinical significance of overexpression of the efflux transporter ABCB1 in predicting response to imatinib therapy.
For her Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholarship, Laura will work in the laboratory of Professor Charles Mullighan at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital learning engineered and xenograft mouse models to facilitate translational studies of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL). Relapsed ALL is the leading cause of childhood non traumatic death. Genomic analyses identified a new subtype of high-risk ALL (Ph-like) which can be treated with clinically available drugs with known safety profiles. Use of these drugs in other diseases results in improved outcome, but resistance still occurs and in high risk ALL patient outcomes are less robust. Laura’s project will assess drug efficacy and mechanisms of resistance to understand key drivers of response and resistance. Findings will inform clinical practice and therapeutic strategies will be optimised to ensure the best chance of cure for patients with the highest risk forms of childhood ALL.
When Laura is not in the laboratory she enjoys travelling, most recently to South America where she trekked the Inca Trail and explored Machu Picchu. When visiting new places Laura also likes to incorporate her love of eating, trying the local cuisines and partaking in cooking classes. On the weekends she typically spends her time riding her bike or hiking, reading and laughing with friends, usually about the latest unfortunate incident to befall her on the daily commute to work.