Osteosarcoma is an aggressive bone cancer in dogs and people. My lab investigates the mechanisms that permit osteosarcoma cells to spread to new sites (metastasis) and survive exposure to chemotherapy (chemoresistance). Additionally, we are working on identifying biomarkers that can help predict outcomes and/or guide therapeutic decisions for patients with osteosarcoma.
Graduate students joining my team at Guelph get unrivalled opportunities to work in the lab and field answering research questions at the cutting edge of science with direct environmental and societal relevance. This important research is exciting, challenging and rewarding for the student, for me as the supervisor and for everyone else in the team.
I and my lab study animal welfare. We're interested in how to create good living conditions for animals kept in labs, zoos and farms; in how scientists can assess well-being objectively; and in what happens to brain and behaviour when animals are raised and kept lifelong in confining, barren enclosures.