Lakshmi Shrihari Kadkol, PhD Candidate

Lakshmi is a fifth-year PhD candidate in the GEMS program at the University of Illinois Chicago. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 2018. She currently works in the Gadi lab, where her thesis research focuses on ovarian cancer immunology, using oncolytic adenoviruses to study key immunomodulatory cytokine signaling within the tumor–immune microenvironment. Her professional background includes research in prostate cancer, experience as a quality analyst in the biotech sector, and early volunteer positions in multiple laboratories, where she developed foundational skills in experimental design and basic laboratory techniques. She grew up in the Chicago suburbs in an Indian household and is a trained Indian classical dancer who continues to perform throughout the Chicagoland area. In her free time, she enjoys going to the movie theater, taking long walks, spending time outdoors—especially being around mountains—loves snow, and has a particular fondness for penguins. She plans to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship in cancer immunology and to build a research-focused career in translational oncology. Her scientific interests center on tumor–immune and tumor–stroma interactions, developing novel immunotherapies, and mechanisms that can be leveraged to improve outcomes for patients with cancer.

Lakshmi’s service reflects a sustained interest in patient-centered cancer care and in supporting research that connects to clinical needs. She first became involved in cancer research as a high school summer volunteer and later, after completing her undergraduate degree, continued working in prostate cancer research labs, where she assisted with ongoing projects and gained experience in routine cell culture and transfection, CRISPR-based genome editing workflows, and quantitative analysis of experimental data. During her undergraduate summers, she also worked as a student volunteer in a clinical cytogenetics laboratory, helping to process patient specimens, prepare metaphase spreads, and assist with karyotyping workflows under supervision. She also volunteered as a Genetic Counseling Assistant in a hereditary cancer program at UIC, where she supported clinic operations by gathering detailed family histories, analyzing pedigrees, tracking genetic test orders and results, and helping communicate risk assessment and testing logistics to patients and families alongside genetic counselors. These experiences across research, cytogenetics, and hereditary cancer counseling inform her current focus on questions that link basic mechanisms to patient impact.

Graduate Student Research Assistant, PhD Candidate
University of Illinois Chicago, Illinois, United States. 2021-Present

Bachelor of Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, Chicago. 2014-2018

American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), Student Member

Kadkol L, Gauchat E, Godoy Calderon M, Patwardhan M, Gadi V. Dissecting TGF Beta and GM-CSF Signaling in the Ovarian Cancer Microenvironment. AACR Annual Meeting 2026, San Diego, United States.

Kadkol L, Gauchat E, Godoy Calderon M, Patwardhan M, Gadi V. Dissecting TGF Beta and GM-CSF Signaling in the Ovarian Cancer Microenvironment. Gary Kruh Cancer Research Symposium 2026, Chicago, United States.

Kadkol L, Gauchat E, Godoy Calderon M, Gadi V. Evaluating a Novel Oncolytic Adenovirus, Ad.GM-CSF. sTGFbetaR, as an Alternative Immunotherapy for Ovarian Cancer. Women's Health Research Day 2024, Chicago, United States.