Yee Lab’s McIntyre wins $10,000 research scholar grant

Amanda Claire McIntyre, a University of Washington graduate student in the Yee Lab, was one of seven graduate students nationally chosen to receive a competitive $10,000 research scholar award by the Joanna M. Nicolay Melanoma Foundation.
   
McIntyre is a fourth-year doctorate student in the UW’s Molecular & Cellular Biology program. Under the supervision of Drs. Cassian Yee and Phil Greenberg at the Hutchinson Center and Drs. Randy Moon and Andy Chien at UW, she is working on projects related to the use of ex vivo-activated and expanded autologous tumor-specific T cells, known as adoptive cell therapy to treat metastatic melanoma.
   
Upon completion of her doctorate, McIntyre said she would like to continue working in translational research in the field of T cell immunity, and also devote some of her time to teaching undergraduate biology, specifically immunology.

The award from the Joanna M. Nicolay Melanoma Foundation will be used to cover tuition costs.

The foundation is a nonprofit public charity founded in 2004 to foster melanoma education, advocacy and research. It started giving the research scholar awards in 2006 to grow interest in melanoma research at qualified cancer centers across the country.
 
“If we can attract the brightest minds that are considering, or already within, the nation’s cancer research pipelines to pursue a career in melanoma research then we’re that much closer to better understanding the disease, identifying effective treatments and, most importantly, finding a cure for this deadly and very prevalent disease,” said Robert Nicolay, foundation chairman.