Associate Professor Joan Heath

Associate Professor Joan Heath



Joan Heath in her office


Associate Professor

BA(Hons) MA Cambridge PhD CNAA

Laboratory Head

My laboratory is using zebrafish to discover genes that are indispensable for the growth of rapidly proliferating tissues during development. Typically these genes are inactive during adulthood but are often commandeered by cancer cells later in life.

We have now identified several genes that may contribute to cancer development. We are currently testing whether they could be worthwhile targets for novel anti-cancer therapies.

To do this we are disrupting the activity of these genes in models of lung, liver, stomach and bowel cancer. Collectively these cancers cause nearly half of all cancer deaths globally, and new therapies are urgently needed.

Research interest





Zebrafish swimming

Why are zebrafish increasingly used in medical research? Joan Heath writes in The Conversation.

Transparent zebrafish

Joan Heath writes about using zebrafish in cancer research, in The Scientist.

Associate Professor Joan Heath in the laboratory

Joan Heath and colleagues discovered a genetic defect that can halt cell growth and force cells into a death-evading survival state.