Heads Up
The head and neck cancer research charity
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In 2006 Heads-Up were delighted to announce the appointment of Stephan Feller as Research Scientist and Group Leader, a position unique in the field of Head & Neck Cancer Research.
Stephan began his work for Heads Up early in 2007 at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine close to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
Stephan began his work for Heads Up early in 2007 at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine close to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
Our first research scientist
Stephan said, ”I am extremely pleased to have the opportunity to establish the new Head and Neck Cancer Research Group at the WIMM. Head and Neck cancers have been on my mind for a long time. My brother is specialised in oral and maxillary surgery and has performed reconstructive surgery on many head and neck cancer patients. I have had the chance to visit him at work and to see patients on several occasions. From these visits and from the death of one of my grandfathers who developed HNC (he never smoked or drank alcohol), I know only too well what a devastating group of diseases HNC’s are and how urgently we need to improve therapies for many patients”.
Stephan graduated 1989 with a Diploma in Biology after studying at Kaiserlautern and Heidelberg. In 1994 he obtained a PhD in biochemistry and cell biology from Rockefeller University, New York. He then stayed on for another year as a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of renowned cancer virologist Hidesaburo Hanafusa, before moving to Wuerzburg University, where he established an independent junior research group. Starting with his doctoral research, Stephan has been interested in the molecular mechanisms that allow cancer cells to develop and persist. In 2001 he moved to Oxford to continue and extend his cancer cell research. This has led to a number of productive local collaborations, which will now be expanded into the area of HNC’s. “Many molecular routes can lead to the development of HNC’s says Stephan. 'We need to understand these much better in order to be able to develop new strategies to block them. This will be the main focus of our work.”
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© 2008 Heads Up
Stephan’s CV can be viewed here (PDF).
Stephan with his research group