Programme details

We invite applications for PhDs from talented graduates or final year undergraduates. Candidates are welcome to apply wherever in the world they are currently based. We particularly welcome British applicants from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds, as they are underrepresented at PhD level, both within the ICR and nationwide. 

We will assess your application and interview performance to select individuals with the potential to become world leading cancer researchers. We consider all applications on merit and have a strong commitment to enhancing the diversity of our staff and students.

Candidates should hold, or, expect to gain either;

• A first, or, upper-second class honours degree (or equivalent) in a relevant subject.
• A masters degree in a relevant subject.

Please see our entry requirements, and how to apply. 

Successful candidates will undertake a four-year research training programme under the guidance of a team of our world-class researchers.

We are recruiting for three projects, two of which will be registered at the ICR. 

Students will receive an annual stipend and tuition fees and project costs are paid for the four-year duration. These are listed below. Please take the time to read the full project proposals. This will contain information about the work involved in each project, the full supervisory team and any collaborators.

Project 1 with Professor Jeff Bamber and Dr Lucia Florescu

Ultrasound and Optical Imaging
Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging
Sir Richard Doll Building, Sutton
In collaboration with the Centre for Vision Speech
and Signal Processing, University of Surrey

Photoacoustic imaging for the optimisation
of CAR T-cell cancer therapy of soft-tissue tumours: 
Reporter-gene Studies

CAR T is a therapy in which the patient’s T-cells are extracted,
genetically modified to express CARs that specifically target
tumour cells, and re-infused back into the patient. This treatment
has set the scene for major developments in the field of
personalised medicine. This exciting multidisciplinary project
involves development of a novel non-invasive imaging approach
for cell tracking in vivo. It will require gene transduction as well as
inventive applications of photoacoustic imaging in liaison with
researchers at the ICR, the NPL and the University of Surrey.

Project area(s):          Biological Sciences and Physics or Engineering
Funder:                       ICR and University of Surrey, UK applicants only. 
                                    International students may apply but should outline how they will
                                    meet tuition fees in the application
Registration:              Institute of Cancer Research, awarded a PhD from the University of London
Application:               https://apply.icr.ac.uk/, round 'ICR, NPL and the University of Surrey - April 2021'
Deadline:                    Wednesday 12 May 11:55pm UK time
Stipend:                      £19,000 per annum
Start date:                  July or October 2021

Reporter-gene studies full project proposal 

Project 2 with Professor Jeff Bamber and Dr Lucia Florescu

Ultrasound and Optical Imaging
Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging
Sir Richard Doll Building, Sutton
In collaboration with the Centre for Vision Speech
and Signal Processing, University of Surrey

Photoacoustic imaging for the optimisation of
CAR T-cell cancer therapy of soft-tissue tumours:
Metrology and system development

This project aims to develop and evaluate the use of
photoacoustic imaging for determining the biodistribution
of the CAR T cells in vivo. Photoacoustic imaging is an
exciting biomedical imaging method which employs an
ultrasound scanner in combination with a pulsed laser to
create high-resolution 3D images of the optical absorption -
properties of tissues and cells. The student will develop the
methodology for photoacoustic quantification of numbers of
tumour and/or CAR T cells transfected for various reporter
genes and assess its performance in tissue mimicking phantoms. 

The emphasis of this project is in the physics, engineering and
quantitative metrology aspects of the new technology development
and evaluation.

Project area(s):          Biological Sciences and Physics or Engineering
Funder:                       EPSRC and National Physical Laboratory, UK applicants only
Registration:              University of Surrey, awarded a PhD from the University of Surrey
Application:               Project link at University of Surrey Website
Deadline:                    Wednesday 12 May 11:55pm UK time
Stipend:                      £19,000 per annum
Start date:                  July or October 2021

Metrology and system development full project proposal 

Project with Professor Professor Clare Turnbull

Translational Genetics
Division of Genetics and Epidemiology
Sir Richard Doll Building, Sutton

Understanding pathogenicity of germline variation
in cancer susceptibility genes from hallmarks
of tumorigenesis

Large-scale genomic sequencing in the normal population
has revealed genetic variation to be much greater than initially
anticipated. Rare variants are collectively common; interpretation
of these in the context of disease susceptibility is highly challenging.
Where a tumour has arisen in an individual carrying a rare variant,
the tumorigenic processes can act as a functional reporter informing
on the likely pathogenicity of the underlying germline variant. This
project aims to generate quantitative metrics to predict variant
pathogenicity and increase our understanding of the genomic
architecture of cancer susceptibility.

Project area(s):          Biological Sciences 
Funder:                       Institute of Cancer Research, open too all applicants including overseas
Registration:              Institute of Cancer Research, awarded a PhD from the University of London
Application:                https://apply.icr.ac.uk/ round 'ICR April 2021'
Deadline:                    Sunday 25 April 11:55pm UK time
Stipend:                      £21,000 per annum
Start date:                  October 2021

Clare Turnbull full project proposal

Entry requirements and how to apply 

All applicants must meet our entry requirements. Specific projects may have further eligibility criteria. These are detailed in the project proposals, linked in the title of each project.  

How to apply

Important dates:

For Jeff Bamber and Lucia Florescu's projects

• Applications opened on Tuesday 30 March 2021
• Applications close on Wednesday 12 May at 11:55pm UK time 
• Remote/online video-based panel interviews will be held during the week commencing 07 June with date to be confirmed

For Clare Turnbull's project

• Applications opened on Tuesday 04 April 2021
• Applications close on Sunday 24 April at 11:55pm UK time 
• Remote/online video-based panel interviews will be held during the week(s) commencing 10 or 17 May with date to be confirmed

Other useful links

• Frequently Asked Questions
• ICR and Imperial Convergence Science PhD programme (closed)

Previously advertised studentships

Dr Matthew Blackledge: Can artificial intelligence predict outcome in patients receiving stereotactic radiosurgery of brain metastasis? Computational Imaging team, Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging, Royal Marsden Hospital, Sutton.

Dr Yinyin Yuan: Deep multi-omic integration to understand inter-organ relationships that regulate systemic immunometabolism, Computational Pathology and Integrative Genomics team, Division of Molecular Pathology, Brookes Lawley Building, Sutton