Aiindrila Dhara – Secondment at the University of Cambridge

• Post by: fantom
• 9 June 2026
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I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to undertake a secondment at the University of Cambridge as part of my PhD journey.

This experience has been incredibly valuable both scientifically and professionally. During my time at Suzanne Turner’s Lab in the Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, I had the opportunity to work closely with researchers in the field of translational cancer research, with a major focus on applying WILDseq in ALCL PDX models to better understand tumour heterogeneity and its role in treatment resistance development.

A key outcome of this secondment was the successful development of DNA-barcoded ALCL PDX models using the WILDseq lineage tracing system, which is a major focus of my PhD research at Masaryk University, funded through the EU Horizon MSCA FANTOM Fellowship programme.

Beyond the research itself, this experience allowed me to exchange ideas, learn new techniques, and build meaningful collaborations in such an inspiring academic environment. I cannot thank Prof. Suzanne Turner, Dr. Lucy Hare, Dr. Marta Ferraresso, and Dr. Perla Pucci and all other members enough for their warm welcome throughout this journey.

I’m also grateful to be part of the FANTOM Doctoral Network, which has made international collaboration opportunities like this possible and continues to support my growth and development as an early-career researcher.

Looking forward to continuing these collaborations and translating these learnings into the next phase of my research.