Dr. Aideen Ryan is a Lecturer in the School of Medicine, National University of Ireland, Galway and is a member of the Biomedical Sciences Institute. Dr Ryan has a BSc. in Biochemistry and Microbiology from NUI Galway and a PhD in Medicine from University College Cork. Her PhD research focused on the role of Fas Ligand and immune suppression in colon cancer.

Dr. Ryan started her post-doctoral career in Prof. Laurence Egan’s lab at NUIG, where she studied the role of NF-kappaB in colon cancer metastasis using molecular and cellular technologies, as well as other disease models. Following this, Dr. Ryan moved to Prof Thomas Ritters Immunology Lab within the Regenerative Medicine Institute (REMEDI). Currently, Aideen is a visiting senior lecturer at Barts Cancer Institute, London.

Dr. Ryan’s work has led to a number of significant publications which were the foundation to the acquisition of several recent prestigious independent grants, postdoctoral fellowships and international awards including an Top Outstanding Young Peoples Award, Irish Cancer Society Research Paper of the Year award, NUI Presidents Award for Research excellence, SFI Starting Investigator Research Award, Haematology Association of Ireland Best Research Award, European Association for Cancer Research (EACR) Young Scientist Award, 64th Lindau Nobel Laureate meeting Award, Irish Cancer Society Research Fellowship (2013). Aideen has published 39 papers on her research in high ranking international journals.

Aideen serves on the editorial and research advisory boards of multiple research journals and funding agencies and is an expert grant reviewer internationally. Aideen has secured over €1.7 million in research funding, as principal investigator, including an Irish Cancer Society Research Fellowship Award, a Science Foundation Ireland Starting Investigator Award and multiple industry-funded research projects. Aideen is a named inventor on patents relating to discoveries on novel mechanisms to activate the immune system in cancer to enhance immunotherapy. Aideen is passionate about science communication and regularly partakes in Science outreach activities, including Pint of Science, Cell Explorers, Primary school science workshops and Irish Cancer Society Public Events.

Aideen’s current research interests include understanding mechanisms of immune modulation of mesenchymal stromal cells, colon tumor cell and stromal cell interactions in the colon cancer microenvironment. Aideen’s group are developing 3D models, in collaboration with Prof Fran Balkwill and Dr Daniela Loessner, to understand mechanisms of immune evasion in colon cancer with particular focus on the influence of tumor cell NF-κB activity and macrophage/stromal cell interactions on the microenvironment.