Meet the Team

Claire Perks completed her PhD from the University of Bristol in 1995, in which she studied ‘The Role of the IGF axis in the Ovary’ in relation to fertility. She then continued these studies as a Postdoctoral Research Scientist at The Royal Veterinary College, University of London before joining the University of Bristol as a Research Associate. Claire is currently a Professor in Tumour Cell Biology and leads the Cancer Endocrinology group based at Southmead Hospital.

Rachel Barker completed her PhD at the University of Bristol in 2010, in which she studied the role of the plasminogen system in Alzheimer’s disease. She continued to work at Bristol as a post-doctoral research assistant in dementia research until 2013. Following a career break, Rachel returned to the University of Bristol in 2018 and began her research into prostate cancer. Rachel is currently a Prostate Cancer UK Research Fellow and is investigating the crosstalk between Alzheimer’s disease and prostate cancer.

Joanne Simpson completed her undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Aberdeen in 2001 and her MSc at the University of Bristol in 2003. Jo joined the Cancer Endocrinology Group as a Specialist Technician in 2025, after spending her career working in cancer research and supporting large-scale longitudinal studies. Jo is responsible for lab management and experimental work, including cell culture and protein-/DNA-based assays using prostate and breast cancer cell lines and adipocytes. Jo is also an NHS staff member, enabling linkage of clinical pathology and radiology data with the group’s prostate cancer biobank. Outside the lab, Jo rows with Bristol Ariel Rowing Club and flies light aircraft.

Emily Gill received her undergraduate degree in Biomedical Sciences in 2015 from Northumbria University before completing her Masters degree in health sciences research at the University of Bristol in 2020. Emily's PhD project focusses on identifying novel links between type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cancer.

Haonan Li completed his Masters degree in the Cancer Endocrinology Group in 2022 investigating the role of GRP78 and IGFBP-2 in breast cancer. He is now a PhD student and his project is focussed on repurposing drugs for the prevention and treatment of prostate cancer. In his free time, he enjoys travelling, working out and reading.

Omar Alkahtani received his BSc in Clinical Laboratory Sciences from King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2013. Omar then obtained a Master’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA in 2021. Omar’s PhD research focuses on the metabolic disturbances in breast cancer and the potential role of PLEKHS1 in this process.‌

Dr. Mariam Ahmed Galal received her Bachelor’s degree in Medicine and Surgery (MBBS) from Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia. She then obtained her Master Degree in Biomedical Sciences subspecialized in Molecular and Cellular Biology, where she established an LC–MS–based proteomics senescence assay to investigate the dysregulation of senescence-associated proteins in breast cancer. She is currently a PhD student at the University of Bristol, where her research focuses on Metformin repurposing for breast cancer treatment and evaluating its effect on dysregulated insulin receptors and senescence proteins. In her free time, she enjoys reading, drawing, horse riding, and playing tennis and chess.

Mai Alhadrami received her BSc in Laboratory Medicine at Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia in 2012. After two years clinical experience at a hospital, Mai moved to the USA to pursue a Masters degree in Tumour Biology at Georgetown University, Washington D.C, USA in 2018. Mai's PhD project focusses on the crosstalk between Alzheimer's Disease and cancer by studying the role of amyloid precursor protein (APP) processing in proliferation of prostate cancer cells.

Hannah Dale has completed three years of a medical degree at the University of Leeds. She is now intercalating at the University of Bristol in the Health Sciences MRes course. Her project is focussed on the inverse relationship between Alzheimer's disease and cancer, specifically drug repurposing (suvorexant) and evaluating the effects on prostate cancer cells. Hobbies include netball and being outdoors!  

Ellie O’Sullivan completed her undergraduate degree in Neuroscience at the University of Bristol in 2020. After working in pathology within the NHS, Ellie started as a Research Technician at South West Dementia Brain Bank in 2022. In 2024, she started her PhD with the Cancer Endocrinology group, looking to disentangle the pathways and molecular basis involved in the inverse associations between Alzheimer's disease and cancer. Ellie uses population data analysis and cell culture techniques, and works with the integrative epidemiology unit, the cardiovascular and dementia research group, and the cancer endocrinology group. Ellie enjoys engaging in outreach and public engagement opportunities, whenever possible, and outside of work she enjoys reading, art and wild swimming.