Pathway Journey
PhD project title: Novel radiopharmaceuticals for selective and efficient tumour cell killing.
This project is focused on exploring the potential of thallium radiotoxicity for targeted anticancer treatment as well as developing approaches for incorporating thallium-201 into targeted radiopharmaceuticals.
Biography
I am doing a four-year PhD at the School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences working on developing novel radiopharmaceuticals for targeted cancer therapy.
I obtained my Master in Pharmacy Degree from the Medical University of Warsaw. In my final year, I was involved in a research project on synthesising hybrid molecules acting as sGC enzyme activators for heart disease treatment based at the Institute of Organic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. This work was awarded on national level in a competition organised by the pharmaceutical company HASCO-LEK.
After registering as a pharmacist, I practiced in community and hospital pharmacies in the UK, lastly focusing on oncology care and anti-cancer medicine management. This work connected me to the most advanced cancer treatments an experience which inspired me to divert my career and focus on fundamental and translational research in anticancer therapies.
I have chosen the MRC DTP iCASE program because it provides an excellent training framework, enabling students to develop the necessary skills, work with some of the leading researchers in the field and foster collaboration with industrial partners to focus on translational research.
Publications
1. Osytek KM, Blower PJ, Costa IM, Smith GE, Abbate V, Terry SYA. In vitro proof of concept studies of radiotoxicity from Auger electron-emitter thallium-201. EJNMMI Res. 2021 Jul 5;11(1):63
2. Costa IM, Cheng J, Osytek KM, Imberti C, Terry SYA. Methods and techniques for in vitro subcellular localization of radiopharmaceuticals and radionuclides. Nucl Med Biol. 2021 Jul-Aug;98-99:18-29.
3. Costa IM, Siksek N, Volpe A, Man F, Osytek KM, Verger E, Schettino G, Fruhwirth GO, Terry SYA. Relationship of In Vitro Toxicity of Technetium-99m to Subcellular Localisation and Absorbed Dose. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Dec 15;22(24):13466.