Postdoctoral Associate - Gerstner Center Cancer Diagnostics

Job Summary

The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard is seeking an outstanding Postdoctoral Associate candidate to join the Priming Agent Team—an exciting multidisciplinary and multi-lab collaboration led by Viktor Adalsteinsson (Gerstner Center for Cancer Diagnostics at Broad), Sangeeta Bhatia (MIT), and J. Christopher Love (MIT)—that seeks to unlock the power of liquid biopsies for cancer diagnostics, by addressing critical biological bottlenecks.

The goal of the Priming Agent Team is to develop the first diagnostic drugs for liquid biopsies that improve the recovery of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) to enable early cancer detection, monitoring for minimal residual disease, and minimally-invasive tumor genotyping from blood samples (see Martin‑Alonso et al. Science 2024).

We are seeking an exceptionally motivated individual to pursue next generation strategies involving protein engineering, nanoparticle engineering, drug delivery, and/or synthetic biology approaches, to elucidate mechanisms of ctDNA shedding and develop pharmacologically-driven approaches to enable liquid biopsy cancer detection of otherwise low ctDNA‑shedding tumors.

Our team includes scientists, engineers, medical oncologists, and computational biologists, spanning the Broad Institute, MIT, Harvard, and Harvard‑affiliated hospitals, and the successful candidate will gain exposure to cutting‑edge science through meetings, symposia, and interactions with colleagues and collaborators.

• Develop the first diagnostic drugs for liquid biopsies that improve the recovery of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) to enable early cancer detection, monitoring for minimal residual disease, and minimally‑invasive tumor genotyping from blood samples.
• Pursue next‑generation strategies involving protein engineering, nanoparticle engineering, drug delivery, and/or synthetic biology approaches to elucidate mechanisms of ctDNA shedding and develop pharmacologically‑driven approaches to enable liquid biopsy cancer detection of otherwise low ctDNA‑shedding tumors.
• Collaborate with scientists, engineers, medical oncologists, and computational biologists across the Broad Institute, MIT, Harvard, and affiliated hospitals.
• Gain exposure to cutting‑edge science through meetings, symposia, and interactions with colleagues and collaborators.

• Ph.D. in Bioengineering or related field and/or M.D. required.
• Deep biological understanding and technical skills.
• Exceptionally innovative and rigorous in problem‑solving.
• Proven track record in scientific research and publications.
• Thrives in a fast‑paced environment and enjoys collaborating with others.
• Strong interpersonal, organizational, communication, and leadership skills.
• Experience with mouse models is preferred.

The expected base pay range for this position as listed above is based on a 40 hour per week schedule. Broad provides pay ranges representing its reasonable and good faith estimate of what the organization reasonably expects to pay for a position at the time of posting. Actual compensation will vary based on factors including but not limited to, relevant skills, experience, education, qualifications, and other factors permissible by law.

At Broad, your base pay is just one part of a comprehensive total rewards package. From day one, this role offers a competitive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance; a 401(k) retirement plan; flexible spending and health savings accounts; at least 13 paid holidays; winter closure; paid time off; parental and family care leave; and an employee assistance program, among other Broad benefits.

The Broad Institute is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

Should you need a reasonable accommodation to complete the application or interview process, please contact recruiting for assistance.