Name: Sumedha Sudhaman
Lab Position: Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Degree: PhD
What’s your background?
I was born and raised in India, which was where I did my Masters and PhD in Genetics.
What research projects are you currently working on?
I analyze big data in order to look for predictive mutational patterns in patients undergoing immunotherapy. Every day, I learn more about bioinformatics, and its power to help answer pertinent research questions, in pediatric cancer genetics, with a focus on replication repair deficiency in children.
Do you have any advice for someone interested in a career in research?
I would highly recommend doing short-term internships or projects in research labs that work in your area of interest, before deciding to dive into a Masters or a PhD. Also, I think it is equally important to pick up as many technical skills as possible, so you can take a versatile approach to problem-solving in your (future) research projects.
What are your interests outside of science?
I love playing the violin (Carnatic classical music), reading fantasy fiction and playing tennis.
What’s your favorite food?
I am a vegetarian, and I like anything with cheese and jalapenos.
Do you prefer coffee, tea, or none?
Tea and coffee (at regular intervals, daily).