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Luke McCaffrey (PhD)

Academic title(s): 
  • Associate Professor, Department of Oncology 
  • Researcher, Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Centre 
  • Scientific Director, Histology Innovation Platform & the Single Cell Imaging and Mass Cytometry Analysis Platform (SCIMAP) 
Luke McCaffrey (PhD)
Contact Information
Email address: 
luke.mccaffrey [at] mcgill.ca
Department: 
Oncology
Degree(s): 

PhD

Location: 
Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute
Graduate supervision: 

Currently supervising students

Group: 
Currently Recruiting
M.Sc. Students
M.Sc. Non-Thesis projects
Ph.D. Students
Research areas: 
Regenerative Medicine
Precision Health
Current research: 

Epithelial morphogenesis, and Tumor initiation, growth, invasion, and metastasis 

Areas of interest: 

How cell polarity controls epithelial morphogenesis, cancer progression and stem cell renewal. 

Biography: 

Dr. Luke McCaffrey is an Associate Professor in the Department of Oncology at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, where he conducts cutting-edge research at the Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute. His work focuses on understanding the mechanisms of cell polarity signaling and its role in malignant transformation, early breast cancer progression, and overcoming the suppressive microenvironment in breast cancer. 

Research Focus: 

Dr. McCaffrey's laboratory investigates how cell polarity regulates: 

  1. Epithelial Morphogenesis: 

  • Studying the role of the Par3, Par6, and aPKC protein complex in organizing and differentiating mammary gland cells during development. 

  • Using advanced methods such as lentivirus-mediated transduction, mouse transplantation models, and time-lapse confocal microscopy of 3D organotypic cultures. 

  1. Tumor Initiation, Growth, and Metastasis: 

  • Exploring how disruptions in polarity proteins contribute to cancer invasion and metastasis in breast and ovarian cancers. 

  • Leveraging human breast cancer samples, 3D culture assays, and in vivo models to examine the interaction between polarity proteins and oncogenes in tumor progression. 

Awards and Recognition: 

Dr. McCaffrey has been recognized for his contributions with the prestigious FRQS New Investigator Award. 

Dr. McCaffrey’s groundbreaking work combines advanced cellular and molecular techniques to reveal how disruptions in cell polarity contribute to cancer progression, paving the way for innovative therapeutic strategies. 

Selected publications: 

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