Department Overview

The Department of Cancer Biology is a basic science department within the College of Medicine of the University of Cincinnati. The dedicated and expanding faculty, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and other staff in the department are devoted to the mission of understanding basic mechanisms of cancer that will form the basis for innovative strategies to prevent and treat cancer and reduce its devastating effects on patients and their families.

Research and training programs in our department are a vital part of the overall increased emphasis to enhance cancer research, education and care for patients at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and its partners, UC Health and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.  

The Cancer Biology Department is the home of a dynamic, collaborative and highly interactive faculty with cutting-edge research programs that span a wide range of cancer-related topics. The department is housed in the beautiful, Frank Gehry-designed Vontz Center for Molecular Studies, which is well equipped with outstanding research space and ancillary support. 

It is in close proximity to the Barrett Cancer Center and the Division of Hematology Oncology that facilitates collaborations with clinical investigator colleagues. Frequent seminars featuring esteemed local, national and international scientists add to the rich intellectual environment.

The department offers a graduate studies program in Cancer and Cell Biology that ranked first in student satisfaction in a national survey of doctoral programs, and houses an NIH-funded training grant for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in cancer therapeutics. 

The program includes nearly 60 faculty members from multiple departments at the University of Cincinnati and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, providing the graduate students with a wide spectrum of cancer-related topics for their doctoral studies. The department faculty teaches in graduate courses of the Cancer and Cell Biology graduate program and other graduate courses as well as medical students at the College of Medicine.  

The combination of academic research with state-of-the-art laboratory space, extensive core facilities and ample opportunity for interaction with clinical faculty makes the Cancer Biology Department a fast-paced and growing organization.