Investigating whether tertiary lymphoid structures in breast cancer are engines of anti-tumour immunity

Researcher: Dr Isabela Pedroza-Pacheco, Oriel Junior Research Fellowship

Location: University of Oxford

Dates:  April 2026 – Mar 2029     Status: Initiated

ABC’s Research Theme: Prevention, Therapies

Dr Pedroza-Pacheco was awarded an Against Breast Cancer Junior Research Fellowship in 2026.

Her project will investigate how the immune system recognises and eliminates cancer cells by applying advanced proteomic and gene expression technologies to analyse tissues and cells obtained from breast cancer patients from the UK and Mexico. The findings will support the design of novel therapies that enhance patient anti-cancer immune responses to improve breast cancer outcomes.

Dr Pedroza-Pacheco is a Career Development Fellow at the CAMS-Oxford Institute (COI) and Cancer NDM Centre for Immuno-Oncology at the Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford.

Isabela obtained her bioengineering and immunology training at the Monterrey Institute of Technology (ITESM, Mexico) and University College London (UCL, UK). Dr Pedroza-Pacheco has made significant contributions in the field of HIV and vaccinology, and is using this experience to further breast cancer research during the fellowship.

Since 2023, Dr. Pedroza has served as the programme director of the Oxford Cancer Mexico Initiative, a collaboration between the University of Oxford, the National Polytechnic Institute in Mexico, and the General Hospital of Mexico.