Cancer Research Experience for Undergraduates (CREU)

What to know about the Cancer Research Experience for Undergraduates

• Fellows work full-time for approximately ten weeks during the summer.
• Fellows may not combine their research work with other significant work commitments or daytime class work.
• Stipends are paid in biweekly installments through direct deposit as fellows complete their program requirements. 
• A housing allowance may be provided on an as-needed basis. The CREU/DICR team will send housing options and information to accepted fellows.

Fellowships are open to:

• Students currently enrolled at an undergraduate institution – including seniors.
  • Note: Incoming Freshmen are not eligible to apply.
• Students who are able to devote 40 hours per week to this program.
• U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.
• Members of underrepresented populations, as defined by the NIH, are strongly encouraged to apply.

Fellows must commit to completing program requirements. If you are selected as a fellow in either program (CREU or DICR), you must sign a Student Agreement committing to these requirements:

Orientation

Orientation will be held on the first day of the program. This one-hour meeting is mandatory for all fellows (unless prior arrangements have been made). We will cover program requirements, training requirements, stipends, and more.

Goals and Objectives

With the help of your mentor, you will write a two to three-page, double-spaced report describing the goals of your research project. The report is due within ten (10) days of your start date. Your mentor will also sign the report.

Twice-weekly Lectures

All fellows are required to attend twice-weekly lectures on various topics related to cancer research. Presenters will include mentors and faculty members. Topics will range from discussions on different cancer types and health disparities to effective research presentations. Attendance will be taken at these lectures.

Clinical/Translational Workshops

These half-day workshops feature speakers from faculty and biotechnology companies on the CU Anschutz campus. These workshops aim to enhance the fellows’ research experience. They ​capitalize on the unique strengths and cancer training opportunities at CU Anschutz in personalized medicine/ molecular diagnostics, cancer genomics /bioinformatics, and experimental therapeutics/emerging technologies. Attending at least two of these workshops is required.

Career Mentoring

These informal discussions will be held during the ten weeks. Presenters and panel members will be drawn from faculty, postdoc trainees, and professional scientists in the community. Topics will include academic career trajectories, biotech/pharmaceuticals careers, life/work balance, and others as suggested by CREU/DICR participants. An informal Q&A session will follow each discussion.

Poster Session

All fellows will participate in the annual poster session on the last day of the program.

When you apply to be a CREU fellow/DICR intern, you will select four mentors you would like to work with and note them on your application. We make every effort to assign you to your first choice, but we may make alternative assignments based on mentor availability.

Projects are performed on the Anschutz Medical Campus.

Click on a mentor’s name to view their faculty profile or lab page.

*Projects are subject to change at any time. They are likely representative of what that person’s lab is doing, but not a guarantee of the actual project you will be performing.

Name	Department/School	Research Interests
Michael Alberti, MD-PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Genetic and molecular basis of splicing factor gene mutations in clonal hematopoiesis and myeloid malignancies.
Benjamin Bitler, PhD	Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology – School of Medicine	Disease progression and metastasis in ovarian cancer.
Andrea Bonetto, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Bone-liver-muscle interactions in colorectal cancer.
Cecilia Caino, PhD	Department of Pharmacology – School of Medicine	Role of mitochondria biology in metastatic breast and prostate cancers.
Akshay Chauhan, MD	Department of Surgery, Division of GI, Trauma, and Endocrine Surgery (GITES) – School of Medicine	Effectiveness of monoclonal antibody Miltuximab in targeting a protein biomarker for aggressive, advanced esophageal cancer.
Diana Cittelly, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Activation of transcription factors in breast cancer cells when interacting with cells within the brain tumor microenvironment; formation of pseudosynapsis between cancer cells and neurons in brain metastases.
Zachary Clayton, PhD	Division of Geriatric Medicine – School of Medicine	We will be performing preclinical studies in mice to assess the adverse effects of cancer and chemotherapy treatment on the cardiovascular system and determining how high-intensity interval training may mitigate this response.
Kasey Couts, PhD	Division of Medical Oncology – School of Medicine	The main focus of our current research is to understand and improve anti-tumor immunity in rare melanomas, particularly mucosal melanoma. We are studying signaling pathways in tumors that are critical for response to immunotherapy, and we are trying to determine the factors that influence these pathways such as tumor epigenetics and the microbiome.
Eduardo Davila, PhD	Division of Medical Oncology – School of Medicine	Generation of potent and long-lasting tumor-specific T cell responses
James DeGregori, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	Understanding how carcinogenic conditions promote cancer evolution and discovering pathway dependencies in cancers that can be exploited therapeutically.
Elan Eisenmesser, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	We work on a range of enzymes involved in many cancers, such as metabolic enzymes and proteases. We have new projects that have begun to figure out mechanisms of granzyme activation, which may be attractive.
Patricia Ernst, PhD	Department of Pharmacology – School of Medicine	The mechanisms that control the balance between self-renewing and differentiating hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) divisions are one major interest of our group. Since these processes are often deregulated in leukemia, we study molecular pathways in both normal and leukemic cells to better understand how proliferation, self-renewal and differentiation are disrupted by leukemia-associated fusion oncogenes.
Joaquin Espinosa, PhD	Department of Pharmacology – School of Medicine	Understanding how gene networks control cell behavior in homeostasis and human disease.
Xiying Fan, PhD	Department of Dermatology – School of Medicine	We anticipate working on projects focused on cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) research, especially invasive cSCC. Specifically, we will explore the molecular mechanisms underlying the progression of invasive cSCC, with an emphasis on identifying key factors and signaling pathways involved in tumor invasion and metastasis.
Heide Ford, PhD	Department of Pharmacology – School of Medicine	My laboratory works on the parallels between normal development and tumor progression/metastasis. We study how cellular plasticity, mediated by alterations in transcription or translation, can allow cancer cells to survive and colonize secondary sites. We work in multiple tumor types, including breast cancer, brain tumors, and pediatric sarcomas.
Mayumi Fujita, MD-PhD	Department of Dermatology – School of Medicine	Investigating biological roles and molecular regulations of 1) IL-37 in adaptive immunity, 2) IL-1b, inflammasomes, and autoinflammation in human melanoma, 3) genotoxic metabolites in melanocytes and skin cells, and 4) intra-tumoral heterogeneity and plasticity in melanoma.
Michael Graner, PhD	Department of Neurosurgery – School of Medicine	Understanding tumor/host immune responses in immune suppression and immunotherapy development.
Kirk Hansen, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	One of our main focuses is improving characterization of tissue extracellular matrices (ECM). We have been refining traditional biochemical extraction and digestion methods to improve proteomic coverage of insoluble and crosslinked proteins of the ECM. These methods are being used to obtain a more detailed view of tissue remodeling in wound healing, aging, cancer and fibrotic diseases in general.
Masanori Hayashi, MD	Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology, Oncology & Bone Marrow Transplantation – School of Medicine	Research centers on innovative approaches to understanding and treating pediatric sarcomas, particularly osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma.
Lynn Heasley, PhD	Department of Craniofacial Biology – School of Dental Medicine	Our lab studies the role of the tumor microenvironment including diverse immune cells in regulating the response of murine models of lung adenocarcinoma to oncogene-targeted therapeutics.
Curtis Henry, PhD	Department of Immunology & Microbiology - School of Medicine	The student will be attempting to define how aging or obesity impacts anti-tumor immunity and the efficacy of immunotherapies.
Melanie Joy, PhD	Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences	A goal of this research program is focused on circumventing kidney injury and related morbidity and mortality due to medications, especially those pertaining to cancer treatments. The research in this area incorporates in vitro and in vivo studies. Specific areas of emphasis are 1) mitigation of kidney injury, 2) role of drug metabolism and transport in nephrotoxicity, 3) role of pharmacogenomics in kidney injury due to drugs.
Aaron Johnson, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	The formation and regulation of chromatin domains and their roles in epigenetic genome regulation.
Miria Kano, PhD	Department of Community and Behavioral Health – School of Public Health	Dr. Kano is a medical anthropologist whose cancer health disparities research focuses on healthcare access and delivery for cancer patients and caregivers minoritized as sexual and gender minority individuals, those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. Kano's research utilizes intersectional approaches to better understand how interrelated factors such as race/ethnicity, geography, poverty, and/or other social determinants of health may inform intervention development. As a secondary focus, Dr. Kano's research involves the design and implementation of equity education and training for cancer researchers and oncology providers.
Laurel Lenz, PhD	Department of Immunology & Microbiology - School of Medicine	We have identified proteins produced by pathogenic, commensal, or probiotic bacteria that modulate immune responses. One of these proteins has shown promise in activation of anti-tumor immune responses in murine models. Some appear to dampen inflammatory responses. We are working to identify the mechanisms through which these proteins exert their effects so they (or the bacteria that produce them) can be better harnessed to treat or prevent cancers and other chronic diseases.
Traci Lyons, PhD	Division of Medical Oncology - School of Medicine	Mechanisms of semaphorin 7a and lymphatic mediated metastasis of breast cancer utilizing mouse models to investigate developmentally regulated programs of inflammation and lymphangiogenesis.
Carlo Marchetti, PhD	Division of Infectious Diseases – School of Medicine	Focusing on the NLRP3 inflammasome's role in cancer and inflammatory diseases, exploring its mechanisms and potential therapeutic strategies. Key findings highlight how NLRP3 activation influences tumor microenvironments, mediates immune responses, and interacts with pathways like STAT3 in melanoma and breast cancer.
Siddhartha Mitra, PhD	Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology, Oncology & Bone Marrow Transplantation – School of Medicine	Focusing on innovative therapeutic strategies and tumor biology in pediatric brain tumors, including MYC-driven medulloblastoma and childhood ependymoma. Investigating the effects of Tacedinaline (CI-994), a class I HDAC inhibitor, which targets tumor growth and leptomeningeal dissemination in medulloblastoma, enhancing susceptibility to anti-CD47-induced macrophage phagocytosis through NF-kB-driven inflammation.
Joe Nassour, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	Our laboratory studies various aspects of telomere biology, with a specific focus on understanding how the shortening of telomeres during replicative aging creates barriers to cell proliferation and restricts the development of cancer. Our research entails a combination of advanced techniques in cell biology, molecular biology, and single-cell multiomics to explore the interplay between telomere function, innate immune signaling, and autophagy, and how these pathways work together to suppress the early stages of tumor development.
Raphael Nemenoff, PhD	Division of Renal Diseases and Hypertension – School of Medicine	Using an orthotopic mouse model of lung cancer to understand the cross-talk between cancer cells and the tumor microenvironment that mediates response to immunotherapy.
Chad Pearson, PhD	Department of Cell & Developmental Biology – School of Medicine	Mechanisms of cytoskeleton disorganization in cancer. We study why centrosomes are commonly dysregulated in breast cancer cells and how this might be corrected.
Todd Pitts, PhD	Division of Medical Oncology - School of Medicine	Finding rational combination partners for molecularly-targeted anticancer and immunotherapy agents.  With a special interest in predictive biomarker and resistance mechanisms using correlative biological assays for early phase clinical trials.
Rytis Prekeris, PhD	Department of Cell & Developmental Biology - School of Medicine	My lab works on molecular mechanism regulating breast cancer cell migration and invasion.
Srinivas Ramachandran, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	Fundamental mechanisms that shape chromatin landscapes by mapping chromatin structure at high temporal and spatial resolution using new experimental and/or computational methods.
Jennifer Richer, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Breast cancer studies of hormone receptor action, tumor immunology and tumor metabolism that affect disease progression.
Mercedes Rincon, PhD	Department of Immunology and Microbiology – School of Medicine	Investigating critical pathways in immunology, cancer, and metabolism, focusing on the roles of p38 MAPK, GSK3β, IL-6, and MCJ in T cell development and function.
Abigail Rolbiecki, PhD	Department of Family Medicine – School of Medicine	Palliative and supportive care. Pain management. Caregiver interventions.
Rebecca Schweppe, PhD	Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes – School of Medicine	Our lab focuses on kinase signaling in thyroid cancer. Our goal is to understand mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapies to develop new more effective therapies to improve patient outcomes.
Carol Sartorius, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Understanding the regulation of HR+ breast cancer heterogeneity during endocrine resistance, the mechanisms of advanced ER+ breast cancer metastasis, nuclear receptor regulation of RNA polymerase III, and altered breast cancer cell metabolism with hormones and endocrine resistance.
Natalie Serkova, PhD	Department of Radiology – School of Medicine	To characterize tumor habitat (cellular and molecular phenotype, tumor aggressiveness, and micro-environment) in mouse models of pediatric and adult brain tumor models using state-of-the-art non-invasive imaging (MRI, CT, PET/CT, optical imaging).
Dan Sherbenou, MD-PhD	Division of Hematology – School of Medicine	Therapeutic optimization for multiple myeloma, especially for patients with drug-resistant and advanced disease to develop novel immunotherapies to myeloma, especially antibody-based therapies.
Michael Sikora, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Response and resistance to anti-estrogen therapies in lobular breast cancer.
Jill Slansky, PhD	Department of Immunology and Microbiology – School of Medicine	Using a colon cancer animal model to identify “mimotope” peptides (mimics of epitopes) with improved antitumor immunity.
Jamie Studts, PhD	Division of Medical Oncology - School of Medicine	Cancer prevention and control--behavioral science with a focus on lung cancer, including screening and survivorship.
Meredith Tennis, PhD	Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care – School of Medicine	The Tennis lab is focused on lung cancer premalignancy and prevention, conducting experiments using cell and mouse models and human clinical trial samples.
Sarah Tevis, MD	Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology – School of Medicine	Understanding the enduring physical and psychological side effects of breast cancer treatment, with the goal of improving the efficiency of care, patient safety, and patient outcomes after surgery for breast disease.
Arianne Theiss, PhD	Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology – School of Medicine	Role and mechanism of mitochondrial signaling in intestinal epithelial cells in gastrointestinal diseases, specifically inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), colitis-associated cancer, and colorectal tumorigenesis.
Richard Tobin, PhD	Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology – School of Medicine	My lab is interested in understanding the factors that lead to effective anti-tumor immunity. We have ongoing projects focusing on the role of unconventional T cells, immunosuppressive myeloid cells, and neo-adjuvant therapies in melanoma immunity.
Linda van Dyk, PhD	Department of Immunology and Microbiology – School of Medicine	We study cancer-associated viruses, particularly interactions between virus and host and host immunity to chronic infection.
Rajeev Vibhakar, MD-PhD	Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology, Oncology & Bone Marrow Transplantation – School of Medicine	Focusing on understanding and targeting pediatric brain tumors, particularly high-grade gliomas and medulloblastomas. We explore the complex interactions between tumor and immune cell types, revealing that these interactions contribute to the heterogeneous phenotypes observed in pediatric high-grade glioma.
Beat Vögeli, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	Targeting macromolecules for cancer treatment at atomic resolution using NMR and further biophysical tools.
Margaret Wierman, MD	Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes – School of Medicine	Research in our lab focuses on understanding the mechanisms of pituitary tumorigenesis and adrenocortical cancer using cell and animal models towards finding new treatments for our patients.
Christian Young, PhD	Department of Pathology - School of Medicine	Identifying and targeting critical molecular mediators of transformation and metastasis in Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).
Ning Zhao, PhD	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics - School of Medicine	My lab studies the regulation of translation and co-translational folding in health and diseases. We apply a state-of-the-art imaging technology to direct visualize translation and co-translational folding with high spatiotemporal resolution in live cells.

 

Questions? Contact us for more information:  

Claire McGraw, Program Coordinator

Claire.McGraw@cuanschutz.edu