Research Team

Anna Bonvissuto-Pin

Lab Manager

Biography: Anna received her MSc from Anatomy and Cell Biology at Western. She has worked in research at McGill University, Purdue University and at Victoria Research Labs. She keeps the lab running smoothly, the trainees happy and Dr. Parsyan on track.

Vasudeva Bhat

Postdoctoral Fellow

Research Interests / Specializations: Breast cancer, cancer stem cells, metastasis, lung microenvironment, tumor-immune microenvironment, liquid biopsy, organoid models, spatial omics
Biography: Dr. Vasudeva (Vasu) Bhat obtained his PhD from the Department of Immunology, University of Manitoba. He is the recipient of postdoctoral fellowships from Breast Cancer Canada and Western University. Outside of the lab, Vasu is an amateur photographer and Marvel and Star Wars enthusiast.

Harjot Kaur Athwal

Graduate Student

Research Interests / Specializations: Breast cancer, Radiotherapy, DNA-damage response (DDR), PLK4 inhibition, Combination Therapy, Organoid models
Biography: Harjot completed a Bachelor of Medical Sciences with an Honours Specialization in Biochemistry and Cancer Biology at Western University. She is an MSc student, investigating the combination treatment of Polo-like kinase 4 (PLK4) inhibitor, CFI-400945, with radiotherapy.

Arpitha Kochiyanil

Honours Undergraduate Student

Biography: Arpitha is an honours undergraduate student in the Medical Sciences and Scholar's Electives program, exploring Artemis expression and its implications in breast cancer.

Sierra Pellizzari

Previous MSc student

Biography: Sierra Pellizzari is a current medical student at Queen’s University. She completed her MSc. in Anatomy and Cell Biology under the supervision of Dr. Parsyan and Dr. Allan investigating the anticancer effects of a combination of novel drug CFI-400945 and radiation in triple negative breast cancer.