The Cancer Therapeutics Research Laboratory (CTRL-GI) is a translational cancer research group based at the National Cancer Centre Singapore. Led by Prof. N. Gopalakrishna Iyer, the laboratory brings together an interdisciplinary team of surgeons, oncologists, biologists, computational scientists, and bioinformaticians to address clinically important questions in cancer biology and therapeutic response.
Our research focuses on understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms that drive cancer progression, metastasis, treatment resistance, and immune evasion. By integrating patient-derived clinical specimens with experimental models and advanced multi-omic technologies, we seek to identify biomarkers and therapeutic vulnerabilities that can improve precision oncology.
The laboratory has a longstanding focus on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, while extending its research to broader questions in solid tumours. Current projects leverage single-cell genomics, spatial transcriptomics and functional disease modelling to investigate tumour heterogeneity, the tumour microenvironment, and treatment response.
Our work spans the full translational spectrum—from patient samples and computational discovery to mechanistic studies and biomarker-guided clinical trials. Through close integration with clinical programmes at NCCS, we aim to translate biological insights into meaningful improvements in patient care.