2024 Canary CREST Program Wraps for the Summer
The 2024 Canary Center Research Education Summer Training (Canary CREST) summer program recently wrapped up, culminating with an end-of-summer poster session that was held Friday, August 16th.
This summer, 16 undergraduate students from across the country participated in the Canary CREST program, which provided a unique and enriching experience in cancer research. The program, now in its seventh year under the sponsorship of the NIH (National Institutes of Health), specifically funded by an NIH/NCI R25 award (led by Utkan Demirci and Sharon Pitteri) and a Stanford VPUE Department Grant, offers a combination of hands-on lab-based research experience and a comprehensive array of educational opportunities to expose students to the field of cancer early detection, ranging from in vitro diagnostics to in vivo molecular imaging.
The poster session allowed students to present their research findings to peers, mentors, and other members of the scientific community. It also provides a unique opportunity for family members of the interns to attend, many of whom come to support and celebrate the accomplishments of their loved ones.
The 10-week Canary CREST program is designed to foster a new generation of scientists by immersing students in cancer research while also offering a robust curriculum of classroom sessions, scientific workshops, career panels, journal clubs, and networking opportunities. Each student is matched with a faculty mentor, who helps design a research project, which is then conducted by the student under the supervision and mentorship of senior scientists and postdoctoral fellows. This multifaceted approach ensures that students gain a holistic understanding of scientific research and its various career pathways.
Since its inception in 2014, the Canary CREST program has been committed to training the next generation of scientists. Many former participants have gone on to pursue advanced degrees and incorporate research into their future endeavors, contributing to the broader scientific community. By offering a combination of practical experience and academic learning, the Canary CREST summer program continues to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of cancer research, one student at a time.
This year’s poster winners were:
Armin Zavareh (Ramasamy Paulmurugan’s Lab) - Best Poster Award
Melissa Parra (Sharon Pitteri’s Lab) - First Runner-up Poster Award
Madison Huang (Sharon Hori’s Lab) - Audience Choice Award
