Nicholas Lai

I completed an integrated Master’s degree in Mathematics (MMath) at the University of Oxford, where I specialised in applied mathematics and mathematical biology. During my studies, I worked on a research project modelling COVID-19 transmission and vaccination strategies, which sparked my interest in applying mathematics to biological and clinical problems.

I am currently a CRUK-funded DPhil student in Cancer Science based in the Byrne Group at the Wolfson Centre for Mathematical Biology, supervised by Prof. Helen Byrne, Dr Joshua Bull and Dr Isabela Pedroza-Pacheco. My research focuses on using mathematical techniques to study interactions between cancer and the immune system.

In collaboration with Dr Pedroza-Pacheco’s group at the CIO, I investigate tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs), organised immune cell aggregates that form within tumour tissue. TLSs have been associated with improved patient outcomes and better responses to immunotherapy across several cancer types. I combine mathematical models with spatial data from tumour samples to study how these immune structures form and organise within cancers. Through this work, I hope to better understand how the organisation of immune cells within tumours influences cancer progression and treatment response.