Sarah Bohndiek nominated by elizabeth murchison
Perhaps it was growing up in London’s Greenwich district, home of The Royal Observatory and National Maritime Museum, that sparked Sarah’s interest in science. Astronomy and astrophysics in particular fascinated her from a very young age, inspiring her to study for an additional GCSE in Astronomy during her school lunchtimes. This passion for physics compelled her to do her PhD in Radiation Physics, but after three years studying X-ray scattering in breast cancer, she decided to extend her training in physics to biochemistry to understand more about cancer itself, working as a post-doc in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge. “When I went round to look at post-doctoral labs, I was fortunate that Kevin Brindle at Cambridge was prepared to take someone on who’d never held a pipette and didn’t know anything about biology. In return, I hope that I fixed his imaging kit a few times,” she says. She went on to marry the two – physics and solving biological problems – and now leads a research team that is split between the University of Cambridge’s Department of Physics and the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute. Her molecular imaging research focuses on how cancers utilise oxygen and cope with its absence. Recently her efforts have led to the development of a new instrument for high throughput spectroscopy, and the use of imaging techniques to measure changes in blood oxygenation within tumours as they respond to chemotherapy. “Sarah Bohndiek is inspirational not only because of her world-leading research, technical expertise and contagious enthusiasm about science, but also because of her generosity in supporting and mentoring younger scientists and students. I am certain that the recognition of this award will inspire others to follow her lead, and seek out and continue careers in science,” says Elizabeth Murchison, who’s passing on the heirloom. “The first time I ever noticed an issue of gender balance was when I moved into a biochemistry laboratory for my postdoctoral fellowship and I suddenly thought, “There’s a hell of a lot of women here.” It never really dawned on me that I was working in a male-dominated environment in physics, which sounds quite naïve. But I’ve never suffered from the lack of female role models.”
Sarah says that because she has never felt disadvantaged herself, she hasn’t been acutely sensitive to gender issues. “All my mentors have been male. I’ve never felt in a position where I’ve been disadvantaged or held back. Instead, I’ve felt incredibly fortunate to have had a number of inspirational scientists as my mentors who have supported and encouraged me throughout my career.”
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