Om Gandhi

Om's research passions center on developing better approaches to diagnose, monitor, and treat nervous system tumors. As an undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania, he conducted research on perturbing the MYCN-polyamine axis to rewire tumor metabolism and promote immunotherapy in neuroblastoma under Dr. Michael Hogarty and Dr. Christina Turn at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). There, he conducted mouse trials to assess the anti-tumor potential of different polyamine depletion strategies and developed downstream genomic and proteomic pipelines to better understand the therapies' biochemical mechanisms. While pursuing an M.S. in Bioengineering concurrently with his undergraduate education, Om became increasingly interested in engineering the endogenous immune system to fight solid tumors. Under Dr. Saar Gill and Dr. Nathan Welty at Penn Medicine's Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, he conducted research on genetically engineering myeloid hematopoiesis with the goal of developing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-macrophages that are both persistent and resistant to anti-inflammatory polarization by tumors. Additionally, complementing his laboratory work, Om collaborated with mentors across Penn Radiology and Penn Neurosurgery, including Dr. Abass Alavi, Dr. Christina Jackson, and Dr. Omar Choudhri, to develop novel imaging approaches for cancer diagnosis and treatment monitoring in clinical settings.

Outside the lab, Om worked to translate research findings into clinical applications and develop more effective global health policy solutions. He led the Wharton Undergraduate Healthcare Club, Penn Undergrad Biotech Society, and Locust Bioventures at the University of Pennsylvania, collaborating with academia, startups, non-profits, and government organizations in oncology.

Currently, Om is pursuing his PhD funded by the Rhodes Scholarship and NIH OxCam Scholars Program. With a strong translational focus, he continues to develop innovative immunotherapies for solid nervous system tumors under Dr. Ronald Germain at NIH and Dr. Tim Elliott at Oxford, synthesizing cancer biology, immunology, and imaging. As an aspiring physician-scientist, Om hopes to ultimately bridge research, clinical practice, and public health policy on the global stage to drive meaningful advances in cancer care and treatment accessibility worldwide