Kathleen Imbach is a PhD student at the Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, Spain, who received an EACR Travel Fellowship to visit and work at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, US between April and July 2025.
The EACR, with support from Worldwide Cancer Research, provides Travel Fellowships of up to €3,500 to enable early-career cancer researchers to gain new skills through a short-term visit to a lab or research group in another country.
You can read about other Travel Fellows and their experiences here.
Name: Kathleen Imbach
Job title: PhD student
Home institute: Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, Spain
Host institute: Dana Farber Cancer Institute, US
Dates of visit: 07 April – 07 July 2025
Research: Capturing spatially resolved gene expression from patients’ tumour samples has become a popular way to understand oncogenic processes in various contexts. However, analysing this data is no easy task for researchers, as it is difficult to know which aspects of a sample are important for a particular clinical variable of interest. To tackle this, I aimed to develop an interpretable neural network approach capable of identifying sample patterns underlying the associated patient phenotypes. Using the H&E image and the gene expression, the model can highlight sample regions and genes or pathways that associate with the clinical labels.
Why did you decide to apply for an EACR Travel Fellowship?
I applied for an EACR Travel Fellowship because while I was very keen to learn and experience a different lab environment during my stay, I knew that it was going to be financially very difficult to live in Boston for 3 months on a Spanish PhD stipend.
Why did you choose the host lab?
I chose the host lab because they are experts in the field of explainable AI as it pertains to patient data analysis, which was what I wanted to learn about while there. The PI of the lab also had previously collaborated with my host lab PI, making it easier for me to get in contact with the host PI and arrange a stay.
Did you take part in any interesting local activities?
While in Boston, I went to several museums: the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts. I also attended a historical walking tour on the Freedom Trail, which took us on historical sites from the American Revolution. I went to numerous comedy shows, trivia nights, and went to the port one afternoon to get a lobster roll which is a quintessential New England delicacy.
Was the host institution very different from your own?
The host institution was very different my home lab in that it was very typical for the labs to have clinical fellows as well as academic researchers. I found this to be valuable in hearing about the clinical aspects of research from clinicians who treat patients. For example, in a presentation they might ask a question about a particular drug newly being offered to patients for treatment or give context to manifestations of disease that they see in patients. This perspective helped us all to constantly think about the clinical impact of our projects, and how they might be relevant given the current status quo approach in diagnosis and treatment.
How has the trip inspired you in your research?
This lab stay has inspired me to think about my research in new ways, and to consider what type of research I would like to pursue upon finishing my PhD. Through learning about the research other lab members are working on and having discussions, I found that I really value and thrive in the type of lab environment they had fostered. The members of the host lab were all incredibly intelligent, but also very willing to help with any sort of issue I might be facing or question I might have. I really appreciated how inviting the group was, both personally and professionally. Their attitudes reinforced how I think academia should be – honest, open and collaborative. This experience not only made me want to strive to embody these values in my own approach to research, but also to ensure that my future work environments also prioritise these values.
How has this visit been beneficial to your research and your career?
This visit has been an incredible learning experience for me, not only regarding the project I set out to do while there, but also about other lines of research and the ways in which labs can be organised and run. Unlike my home lab, the lab I conducted my stay in is much larger, and members of the group span various research disciplines. Because of this, the lab is organised in subgroups focusing on different lines of research. For example, I primarily attended the Machine Learning subgroup meetings in reference to my own project, but I also attended other subgroup meetings like the Single-Cell group, the Germline group, and the Clinicogenomics group. There are also lab-wide meetings each week where all groups come together to present and discuss their work or give their expertise on a particular topic. I have never experienced a lab organised in such a way, but I really enjoyed this kind of structuring; it facilitated cross-disciplinary conversations and permitted me to learn not just about machine learning approaches but other interesting means to pursue scientific inquiry.
Moreover, attending the Germline group meetings really stood out to me. I felt particularly interested in the kind of work being done by that group, and accordingly it served as a source of inspiration for the type of research I’d like to do after my PhD.
Is there anything else you’d like to mention?
Overall, it was an incredible experience, not only to learn about machine learning applications, but to have the opportunity to meet so many other talented researchers and learn about their projects and goals. I really enjoyed my time in the lab and feel that I learned so much both about the cutting-edge science being done in Boston, but also about myself and the types of environments I thrive in and what lines of work interest me most.
Want to find out more?
If you are interested in applying for the Travel Fellowship scheme, please click here for more information: EACR Travel Fellowships.
