We were delighted to welcome alumna Amy Lovejoy back to school last week, joining her sister Issey to perform a violin duet during our Celebration Assembly. It was a truly special moment enjoyed by pupils and staff alike. Music remains an important part of Amy’s life, and she continues to enjoy playing the violin both with her sister, as well as with student groups and ensembles across London.
It was also wonderful to catch up with Amy and hear about her impressive journey since leaving Burgess Hill Girls.
She is currently studying Medicine at Imperial College London and paused her medical degree to complete an intercalated PhD, funded by the Cancer Research UK Convergence Science Centre and will return to the fifth year of her medical degree this July.
For her PhD, Amy is registered in Imperial’s Department of Earth Science and Engineering and is also affiliated with the The Institute of Cancer Research working on a fascinating piece of research for her project which she explains here;
“Zinc is a vital trace element in the body, playing key roles in processes like cell growth, immune function and wound healing. Interestingly, changes in zinc levels have been observed in various cancers, including breast cancer—but we still don’t fully understand why this happens or what it means for how tumours grow, behave, or respond to treatment.
To make sense of what these zinc patterns mean, we’re combining this elemental imaging with “multiomics” tools that look at the molecular characteristics of the tumour. This includes gene expression analysis (which genes are turned on or off) and spatial molecular biology techniques such as immunohistochemistry. This allows us to see not only what proteins are present, but also where they are in relation to the zinc and to each other, within the tumour tissue.
By integrating these approaches, we aim to uncover the biological processes responsible for zinc accumulation in specific areas of the tumour. Understanding these mechanisms could give us important clues about tumour biology and lead to new ways of predicting how a tumour might behave or respond to treatment.
To our knowledge, this is the first time these advanced techniques have been combined in this way. Ultimately, our goal is to find out whether zinc distribution patterns could serve as useful biomarkers, helping doctors better understand each patient’s cancer and tailor treatments more effectively”.
On completion of her studies, she hopes to specialise in Oncology, pursuing a career as a clinician‑scientist, combining clinical practice with academic research.
