Mumbai-born Shawn Wadia, successfully completed the PhD component of the MD-PhD program at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, marking a major milestone in his journey toward becoming a physician-scientist. Wadia’s research explored the interaction between Wnt and MAPK signalling pathways in pancreatic and colorectal cancers. His work sheds new light on how these aggressive tumors grow and respond to treatment, paving the way for more effective therapies.
Shawn holds a degree in Neuroscience from Duke University (USA), with minors in Chemistry and Biology, and an Advanced Certificate in Pre-Health Specialized Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. He has conducted research across leading institutions including Duke, Penn and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute. A co-author in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Wadia is now preparing a first-author manuscript based on his thesis. He has presented his findings at international conferences in Barcelona, Kyoto, and Chicago.
Also a competitive athlete, Wadia has represented Mumbai in state-level swimming, cricket, football and rugby. “I’m deeply grateful to my Mumbai roots and the many mentors who shaped my journey,” said Wadia. His achievement highlights the growing global footprint of Indian-origin researchers in biomedical science.