Cancer biology courses are taught by staff at the Auckland Cancer
Society Research Centre, located in the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences.
Students who study cancer biology at undergraduate level are able to do research
projects within the ACSRC as part of their honours, masters or PhD study.
Undergraduate courses
MEDSCI 302 – introduction to cancer biology
Official course description
Students enrolled in this course study the scientific basis of cancer, including:
- Mechanisms underlying the development of cancer
- Carcinogenesis - the changes that occur in tissues or cells during the origin of
cancer
- DNA damage and repair
- Properties of cancers cells (eg, abnormalities of cell growth and division)
- The growth of tumours
- Tumour classification
- Tumour histopathology
- Tumour spread (metastasis)
- An Introduction into cancer treatment strategies
- A laboratory component, where students conduct experiments used in cancer research,
is also included in this course MEDSCI 302
Postgraduate courses
MEDSCI 713 –
principles of cancer therapy
Official course description
This course examines:
- The molecular and cellular processes underlying cancer treatment
- The development of tumour-selective therapy
- The principles of radiotherapy and chemotherapy
- DNA and the basis of its interactions with anticancer drugs
- Recognition of DNA by proteins and how this is exploited by anticancer drugs, oncogenes
and other regulatory gene products
- Signal transduction mechanisms and therapeutic strategies for changing cell cycle
control
- The role of the patient’s immune system in cancer therapy
- New approaches to cancer therapy (eg. gene therapy)
MEDSCI 714 –
advanced cancer biology
Official course description
This course involves advanced study of concepts related to the biology of cancer,
including:
- Molecular mechanisms of cancer development
- Signal transduction pathways
- Genomic instability
- Telomeres and telomerase
- Programmed cell death
- DNA damage-sensing mechanisms
- Hypoxia and tumour progression
- Protein degradation
Postgraduate research opportunities
Listed below are potential supervisors
and general information on the type of research project areas available as student
projects.
Alternatively, find potential projects of interest by browsing our
Research section.
Please contact the appropriate person directly with your enquiries, or
for further
information contact the graduate student coordinators.
Student coordinator
Find out about our Postgraduate student opportunities
Find out about our Scholarships and funding
opportunities
Contact our Graduate students
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