Rate My Professor Sai Shyam Vasantharajan

Dr. Sai Shyam Vasantharajan serves as an Assistant Research Fellow in the Chatterjee Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Dunedin School of Medicine, University of Otago. Hailing from Bangalore, India, he obtained his Master’s degree in Biochemistry prior to commencing his doctoral studies in cancer research at the University of Otago. In June 2024, he successfully defended his Doctor of Philosophy thesis entitled “Characterisation of circulating tumour cells isolated by a size-based method in colorectal cancer.” This work involved the development and evaluation of size-based enrichment techniques for isolating circulating tumour cells (CTCs) from the peripheral blood of colorectal cancer patients, addressing challenges in CTC detection due to their rarity and heterogeneity. His contributions during his PhD included pilot studies demonstrating the feasibility of this approach for potential liquid biopsy applications in bowel cancer detection.

Vasantharajan’s ongoing research investigates epigenetic biomarkers within circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) from lung cancer patients, building on his expertise in cancer epigenetics and liquid biopsies. His publications highlight key advancements in the field, such as “Exploring Potential Epigenetic Biomarkers for Colorectal Cancer Metastasis” (International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2024), where he co-investigated DNA methylation patterns associated with metastatic progression; “Genome-Scale DNA Methylome and Transcriptome Profiles of Prostate Cancer Recurrence After Prostatectomy” (Data, 2024); “Assessment of a Size-Based Method for Enriching Circulating Tumour Cells in Colorectal Cancer” (Cancers, 2022); “Size-Based Method for Enrichment of Circulating Tumor Cells from Blood of Colorectal Cancer Patients” (Methods in Molecular Biology, 2023); and “The Epigenetic Landscape of Circulating Tumour Cells” (Biochimica et Biophysica Acta - Reviews on Cancer, 2021). These works, often in collaboration with researchers including Sharon Pattison, John L. McCall, Euan J. Rodger, Elin S. Gray, and Aniruddha Chatterjee, have accumulated over 80 citations according to Google Scholar. Additionally, he delivered a presentation at the Otago Medical School Research Society Research Staff Presentations and Awards event in 2025. His research supports innovative non-invasive strategies for cancer monitoring and personalized medicine.