Research Technician I​/II - Ghajar Lab

Overview

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is an independent, nonprofit organization providing adult cancer treatment and groundbreaking research focused on cancer and infectious diseases. Based in Seattle, Fred Hutch is the only National Cancer Institute‑designated cancer center in Washington. With a track record of global leadership in bone marrow transplantation, HIV/AIDS prevention, immunotherapy and COVID‑19 vaccines, Fred Hutch has earned a reputation as one of the world’s leading cancer, infectious disease and biomedical research centers.

Fred Hutch operates eight clinical care sites that provide medical oncology, infusion, radiation, proton therapy and related services, and network affiliations with hospitals in five states. Together, our fully integrated research and clinical care teams seek to discover new cures to the world’s deadliest diseases and make life beyond cancer a reality. At Fred Hutch we value collaboration, compassion, determination, excellence, innovation, integrity and respect.

Our mission is directly tied to the humanity, dignity and inherent value of each employee, patient, community member and supporter. Our commitment to learning across our differences and similarities make us stronger. We seek employees who bring different and innovative ways of seeing the world and solving problems. The Ghajar Lab at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is searching for a research technician to aid in the conduct of first‑in‑class studies to profile seeds of metastases in breast cancer patient bone marrow.

A research technician position (full‑time) is available immediately in a laboratory within Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center’s Translational Research Program. The Ghajar Laboratory focuses on understanding the biology underlying disseminated tumor cell (DTC) dormancy and formulating therapeutic means to eradicate dormant DTCs. We are looking for a meticulous individual who understands the urgency and importance of our work to join our team to help us understand DTC biology, in part by profiling human DTCs isolated from breast cancer patients.

One outcome of this work will be identification of targets for immune‑based therapies.

Research Technician I

• Keep meticulous records on processed samples, storage conditions and data generated on a large human clinical study.
• Prepare and present written or oral progress reports concerning studies including assembly, organization, and interpretation of data.
• Conduct literature reviews to assist in determining most suitable methods to be used in research.
• Adhere fastidiously to detailed protocols to process human bone marrow, index sort single DTCs, and generate single cell genomic and transcriptomic libraries.
• Conduct immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence on human tissue specimens.
• Organize sequencing data for downstream processing.
• Assist with follow‑up experiments in mice and in cell culture to test biologic and immunologic implications of human studies.
• Perform statistical analyses on resulting data.
• Perform other duties – including those related to lab management – as required.

Research Technician II

• In addition to the job duties of Research Technician I:
  Identify methodological problems in research protocol and implement modifications to optimize experimental results.
• Assist in the design of experiments; may be responsible for the performance of individual research projects.
• Assist in publication of results by proofreading, editing, and contributing ideas.
• May perform statistical analyses, write computer programs, or manage research data base.

Research Technician I:

• Bachelor’s degree in related scientific field or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Demonstrated scientific knowledge in the area of study.
• Demonstrated basic laboratory skills.

Research Technician II:

All minimum qualifications of the Research Technician I, plus:

• 2 years of experience working in a lab outside of school coursework.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• One year contiguous research experience in a biology, biochemistry, or other laboratory during undergraduate tenure.
• Experience with mammalian cell culture, flow cytometry, genomic approaches, and/or…