David Cook

Dr. Cook obtained his PhD with Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden from the University of Ottawa, combining high-throughput screening and single-cell genomics to study epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity in cancer. This phenomenon describes the capacity of malignant cells to dedifferentiate, increasing their ability to invade surrounding tissue, evade immune detection, and resist therapeutics. During this period, he also worked on preclinical models of ovarian cancer to study disease biology and therapeutic testing. For his postdoctoral studies, Dr. Cook worked with Dr. Jeff Wrana (Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Toronto, ON) to study how cellular phenotypes and tissue structure influence one another.

Dr. Cook is a recipient of the CIHR Banting Fellowship, the OICR Rising Star Award, and the Worton Researcher in Training Award.