Postdoctoral Researcher in Deep Learning

Date: 13 Feb 2025

Site: VCCC (Parkville)

Location:

MELBOURNE, VIC, AU, 3000

Company: Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre

Unit: Trigos

Division: Cancer Research

Department: Laboratory Research

Enterprise Agreement: Allied Health Professionals (Victorian Public Sect

Trigos

The Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre (Peter Mac) is a Victorian public health service and a world-leading comprehensive cancer centre seeking to excel across all spheres of clinical care, research and education. We have the largest cancer research enterprise in Australia and provide treatment to about 40,000 people with cancer each year. We aim to continuously improve cancer care, research and education across all cancers and for all people affected by cancer: changing lives, breaking new ground. Everything we do is underpinned by our core values, Excellence, Compassion and Innovation. Welcoming people from a wide variety of different backgrounds and experiences is critical to fostering innovation, cultivating compassion, attracting top talent and providing the best possible cancer care for our patients.

YOUR ROLE IN OUR FUTURE

Postdoctoral Researcher in Deep Learning - Trigos Laboratory

We are seeking a talented, highly motivated and self-directed postdoc with deep learning experience to drive projects in the lab aimed at extracting biologically and clinically relevant information from patient imaging, including PET and CT scans.

The Trigos Lab focuses on understanding how cancer evolves and develops resistance to treatment by mining large genomics and patient imaging datasets. We are based within the Computational Biology Program at the Peter Mac, which is an active community of scientists from a range of disciplines including bioinformatics, biomedicine, computer science, physics, statistics and software engineering. We collaborate widely with scientists and clinicians in prostate cancer and multiple myeloma, including the Prostate Theranostics Imaging Centre of Excellence (ProsTIC) and the Barrie Dalgleish Centre for Myeloma and Related Blood Cancers.

The Postdoctoral Researcher will have access to large repositories of PET and CT scans from the Peter Mac and other hospitals, together with rich molecular data derived from tissue and blood samples (e.g. genomics) and extensive clinical metadata. Projects will aim to develop models predicting progression and survival based on this rich data, as well as understanding how imaging features are linked with genomic signatures. The Postdoc will have the opportunity to develop and apply image segmentation, data augmentation, multimodal integration, autoencoders, classification techniques, among others, as well as develop novel deep learning architectures.

The postdoc will be central to the development of this area of research in the Trigos Lab, and will work collaboratively with medical physicist, nuclear medicine physicians and radiation oncologists from the Peter Mac and other hospitals. There will also be extensive mentorship in preparing research manuscripts, grant applications and developing collaborations, and there will also be opportunities to supervise undergraduate and postgraduate students.
This position is responible for:

Conducting rigorous, valid and ethical research both independently and as part of the laboratory team.
Identifying and learning new analytical techniques as required.
Contribute to and publish academic papers and other scholarly outputs to a high academic standard and in a timely and efficient manner.
The communication of Research outcomes.
Fostering of good working relationships within the laboratory and with all collaborators.

This position is:

12-months Fixed-Term, Full-Time
Onsite presence essential at 305 Grattan Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000
Basic Salary Range: $123,698.64 to $137,112.56 AUD
Advertising from 14th February 2025 to 14th March 2025

This position is open to both Australian and international applicants. For further information about this opportunity, click Apply to be redirected to the Peter Mac Careers page where you can review the position summary. Alternatively, please contact us using the information below for a confidential discussion.

Applicants to this role should provide a covering letter, resume and response to selection criteria outlining relative key skills and experience to assist us with our assessment.

Hiring Manager: Anna Trigos
Email: Anna.trigos@petermac.org

Applications Close: 14th March 2025

Position Summary

We are seeking a talented, highly motivated and self-directed postdoc with deep learning experience to drive projects in the lab aimed at extracting biologically and clinically relevant information from patient imaging, including PET and CT scans.

The Trigos Lab focuses on understanding how cancer evolves and develops resistance to treatment by mining large genomics and patient imaging datasets. We are based within the Computational Biology Program at the Peter Mac, which is an active community of scientists from a range of disciplines including bioinformatics, biomedicine, computer science, physics, statistics and software engineering. We collaborate widely with scientists and clinicians in prostate cancer and multiple myeloma, including the Prostate Theranostics Imaging Centre of Excellence (ProsTIC) and the Barrie Dalgleish Centre for Myeloma and Related Blood Cancers.

The Postdoctoral Researcher will have access to large repositories of PET and CT scans from the Peter Mac and other hospitals, together with rich molecular data derived from tissue and blood samples (e.g. genomics) and extensive clinical metadata. Projects will aim to develop models predicting progression and survival based on this rich data, as well as understanding how imaging features are linked with genomic signatures. The Postdoc will have the opportunity to develop and apply image segmentation, data augmentation, multimodal integration, autoencoders, classification techniques, among others, as well as develop novel deep learning architectures. The postdoc will be central to the development of this area of research in the Trigos Lab, and will work collaboratively with medical physicist, nuclear medicine physicians and radiation oncologists from the Peter Mac and other hospitals. There will also be extensive mentorship in preparing research manuscripts, grant applications and developing collaborations, and there will also be opportunities to supervise undergraduate and postgraduate students.

Enterprise Agreement

Allied Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement

Classification or Salary Range

Level A/B: 1RA6 - 1SR10

Immunisation Risk Category

Category C: Position within a non-clinical setting.

Key Relationships

Internal	Dr. Anna Trigos Other members of the Trigos laboratory Collaborators of the Trigos laboratory Research staff at Peter Mac Research support staff at Peter Mac
External	Collaborators and peers from other research institutes

Skills

Essential Requirements

Knowledge and Skills:

PhD degree in an appropriate area of study (such as Computer Science, Data Science, Physics, Engineering, Medical Physics or related quantitative discipline) with documented expertise in deep learning of medical imaging data. Applicants with a clinical background, but with extensive experience in developing novel deep learning models, are also encouraged to apply.
Strong interest in cancer research.
Advanced skills in programming, software development and data analysis, including PyTorch, TensorFlow and scikit-learn.
Extensive experience using high-performing computing clusters.
Ability to design novel tools and analyses based on biological questions.
Strong desire to combine different big data types, including patient imaging, microscopy and multi-omics, with deep learning.
Ability to develop novel algorithms, tools and analysis techniques.
An outstanding publication record in top tier journals and conferences, commensurate with experience and opportunity.

Personal Qaulities:

Strong self-motivation.
Proven interpersonal and collaborative skills.
Ability to explain complex analytical techniques to a broad range of audiences.
Strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.
Good verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to meet deadlines without compromising close attention to detail and accuracy.
Ability to manage multiple ongoing projects.

Desirable Requirements

Experience in biomedical or cancer research.
Experience with genomics and bioinformatics.
Experience working with experts from different fields (e.g. radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians, biologists, medical physicists, engineers).
Supervisory experience.

Key Accountabilities

Key Accountabilities	Demonstrated By / Key Performance Indicators
1. Conducts rigorous, valid and ethical research both independently and as part of the laboratory team	Develop research projects under the guidance of the laboratory head. Design and carry out high-quality research. Identify and learn new analytical techniques as required. Effectively time manage concurrent projects. Work collaboratively with others to meet project objectives. Develop research expertise and detailed and thorough knowledge of own and related research areas with an increasing degree of autonomy. Contribute to and publish academic papers and other scholarly outputs to a high academic standard and in a timely and efficient manner. Contribute to the preparation of research proposal submissions to internal and external funding bodies. Co-supervise and mentor research students and other junior members of the lab. Show high level of integrity and work ethics. Have excellent record-keeping skills.
2. Communication of Research	Communicate effectively and engage with others in the team. Contribute to discussions and meetings. Present research results at laboratory meetings, institute seminars and conferences. Communicate complex analyses to non-experts. Actively participate in research seminars and conferences to disseminate research findings.
3. Foster a good working relationship with colleagues	Develop good working relationships with others within the laboratory, collaborators and the wider research community at the Peter Mac. Provide supervision and mentorship to students and junior staff members. Be polite and respectful with others both within the laboratory and within the institute. Provide assistance to others in the lab when needed.
4. General research skills	Sound administrative abilities. Sound record keeping skills.

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Peter Mac requires its staff to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Please contact us if you would like to discuss this requirement.

WHY WORK FOR PETER MAC

Peter Mac offer a range of benefits which support our people both personally and professionally. Our staff benefits include award winning facilities, professional development and events, a health and wellbeing program, flexible work practices and policies and financial benefits such as salary packaging. We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, all members of the LGBTQI community and people with a disability.