Welcome

In the Patel Lab, we are seeking to develop innovative strategies to diagnose, characterize, and monitor cancer with the ultimate goal of improving patient outcomes.  Our research aims to understand and exploit cancer-specific signals within DNA fragments that are shed from tumor cells into a patient’s bloodstream.  We are developing ultrasensitive diagnostic tools to enable measurement of trace amounts of these circulating tumor DNA molecules via analysis of genomic and epigenomic signatures.  In parallel, we are conducting validation studies to establish the utility of these technologies for various clinical applications including early detection of new and recurrent cancers.

Our research draws upon expertise from diverse fields such as clinical oncology, molecular biology, chemistry, computer science, and microfluidics.  We rely on extensive collaborations with both scientists and clinicians, and we are always open to new collaborations from investigators with good ideas.