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Sara M. Nolte

Sara Nolte holds a Bachelor of Health Sciences and Masters of Science in Biochemistry & Biomedical Sciences from McMaster University. Her MSc research focused on developing a cancer stem model to study brain metastases from the lung. She then spent a year working on developing cell-based cancer immunotherapies. Throughout a highly productive graduate career, Sara became interested in scientific communication and education, and later pursued a career as a Physician Assistant (PA) in order to build medical expertise. Working as a PA in Emergency Medicine helps her find ways to bridge the gaps between laboratory and clinical science, and to improve scientific and health-related communication with the public. Outside of science, Sara enjoys participating in a variety of sports, and is a competitive Olympic weightlifter hoping to compete at the National level soon!

Posts by: Sara M.

Ottawa researchers make tumour-marker negative cancers positive with oncolytic viruses

I’m excited to be sharing some new Canadian cancer immunotherapy developments! We’ve already seen some great stuff with CAR T cells and checkpoint inhibitors. But the strength of these therapies is also their downfall: their targets make them highly specific and powerful against tumours expressing and exploiting the targets, but also limit the use of […]

Cell-based therapy approved as alternative to standard UCB transplant for hematological malignancies

In addition to showers, flowers and warmer weather, this spring also brought renewed hope for patients with hematological malignancies undergoing stem cell transplants (SCTs) in the form of the approval of Gamida Cell’s Omisirge® (omidubicel). This cell-based therapy will reduce the risk of life-threatening infections that these patients face during the process of their life-saving […]

Finding the perfect match: breaking down the science of organ and stem cell transplant matching

One of the major limitations of using stem cell donors is the challenge of finding an adequate match, which is why I always get excited about therapies that use a patient’s own tissue. But why is the issue of a “match” such a big deal? You may have come across terms like “graft versus host […]

Regenerating a degenerative joint: MSCs as treatment for osteoarthritis

While you all know me as a writer for Signals, I actually spend most of time working clinically. When wearing my health-care provider hat as a physician assistant in orthopaedics, I’m often asked about the use of stem cell therapy for the treatment of arthritis. Beyond the fact that stem cell therapy is not currently […]

An immune system and cancer immunotherapy primer

We (or maybe it’s just me) talk about cancer immunotherapy around here A LOT. It’s hard not to when there are so many new advancements in this field of cancer research! I thought it was time to provide a guide to cancer immunotherapy, highlighting some of the more common treatments being used today. What is […]