This program's mission is to provide students with:

  • Advanced knowledge in current concepts in molecular, cellular, and genetic processes that contribute to the development and treatment of cancer
  • Specialized training in experimental methodology used to study cancer in a laboratory setting
  • Required shadowing of clinical oncologists to help identify clinically-relevant research questions leading to projects with a potential impact on cancer patients

Learn about our program's curriculum

Curriculum Overview

The Graduate College requires the satisfactory completion of 72 semester hours in order to obtain a Ph.D.

Required Courses

For the first year, students take common courses with other Biomedical Science students.

Cancer is a term that encompasses over 210 different types of malignancies, each with a unique set of biological, etiological, and clinical features. Cancer researchers continue to widen their scope as more is learned, requiring a breadth of knowledge in many areas of research (e.g. cell biology, genetics, immunology, and cell metabolism) to understand the complexities of cancer etiology and treatment.

The Cancer Biology Program provides this knowledge through classroom and research training leading to a PhD degree, and preparing students for a variety of career paths in academic, clinical, and industry environments dealing with the study and/or treatment of cancer.

A campus visual from the Carver College of Medicine outdoor lawn space.

Ready to apply?

You can learn more about the application process and requirements here.

Events

 ACB Seminar Series - Joy James promotional image

ACB Seminar Series - Joy James

Wednesday, October 14, 2026 9:30am to 10:30am
Bowen Science Building

Joy James, a Cell and Developmental Biology Graduate Student in Sam Stephen's Lab will present a seminar titled "Proinflammatory Cytokines Induce Golgi Remodeling In Pancreatic Β-cells Beyond Inos-no Signaling."

REDCap MyCap Training

Wednesday, October 14, 2026 10:00am to 11:00am
Virtual

This is the fifth step in the REDCap training series. In this training, we will discuss using the MyCap mobile app for data collection. We will cover features such as:

Creating participants

Creating tasks and schedules

Active tasks and their unique data output

Direct messages and announcements

This training is a demo and not hands-on. After this training, you will have a basic understanding of the MyCap mobile app for REDCap.

Register by clicking the virtual event link above or by going here:  https:/...

Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Workshop, Cobey Donelson promotional image

Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Workshop, Cobey Donelson

Wednesday, October 14, 2026 12:00pm to 1:00pm
Bowen Science Building