The Role of Tumour Hypoxia in Shaping Responses to Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy

Amen Shamim, a post-doctoral researcher at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, was recently awarded the Don Whitley Scientific (DWS) Travel Grant. Amen used the award to present her research at the Festiva of Genomics, London, where she showcased her study of tumour hypoxia and its role in shaping responses to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, with the Whitley H35 Hypoxystation being integral to her research.

We asked Amen to share more about her work:

I am Amen Shamim, a post-doctoral researcher at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, University of Manchester, UK, where I am fortunate to be working in the Translational Radiobiology Laboratory with the team of Prof. Ananya Choudhary.

My research focuses on the biology of tumour hypoxia and its role in shaping responses to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. A key aspect of my work involves identifying novel hypoxia-associated biomarkers and molecular signatures, particularly in muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) and prostate cancer. Using genome-wide and tumour microenvironment–focused approaches, we investigate how hypoxia drives tumour progression, genomic instability, and resistance to therapy. Recently, our work has centred on defining how immune landscape and hypoxia exacerbates MIBC aggressiveness and limits treatment effectiveness.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) is now a central component of multimodal cancer treatment, aiming to reduce tumour burden, improve surgical outcomes, and eliminate micrometastatic disease. While NAC has demonstrated significant benefits across multiple solid tumours, patient responses remain highly variable. Understanding how the tumour microenvironment, particularly hypoxia, influences treatment response is a critical challenge.

In our recent study, we aim to characterise the baseline (pre-treatment) and post-chemotherapy tumour microenvironment (TME) in muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), with a focus on immune cell infiltration and hypoxia-mediated immune suppression. By elucidating the dynamic interplay between hypoxia and immune evasion, we seek to uncover mechanisms by which hypoxia shapes therapeutic resistance. These insights could inform the development of novel combination strategies designed to enhance immunogenicity while overcoming immunosuppressive barriers. Ultimately, our findings may improve patient stratification and therapeutic response to NAC, paving the way for more effective precision oncology approaches in MIBC.

Our work in translational radiobiology aims to bridge this gap, supporting the development of more predictive biomarkers and personalised therapeutic strategies.

I would like to sincerely thank DWS for providing me with this award. The DWS Travel Grant enabled me to attend the Festival of Genomics, London 2026, where I had the opportunity to present my work to a multidisciplinary research community. This support has been invaluable in advancing my research, fostering meaningful discussions, and helping to build future scientific collaborations.