PhD Candidate
St Vincent's Institute of Medical Research, Australia
Kezia Gitareja, BSc (Hons), is a PhD candidate at St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research and the University of Melbourne, Australia. Her research employs genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 knockout screens, spatial transcriptomics, and single-cell immune profiling to investigate ribosome-targeting strategies in multiple myeloma. She began her research journey as a recipient of the Cancer Council Victoria Cancer Research Studentship during her undergraduate studies, an experience that inspired her to pursue a career in cancer research. Following a successful Honours project, she was awarded a prestigious Research Training Program Scholarship, supported by the Australian Commonwealth Government and the University of Melbourne, to undertake her PhD. She has also received a Tour de Cure Australia Grant and the SVI Foundation Top-Up Award to support her doctoral research. Kezia has published three first/co-first author papers in peer-reviewed journals and presented her work at national cancer conferences in Australia.