Dr Shivaani Mariapun's PhD thesis contributes to the understanding of mammographic density, an established risk factor for breast cancer in Asian women. photos: AZMAN GHANI/The Star
Driven by scientific inquiry and a strong desire to create tangible societal impacts, award-winning cancer researcher Dr Shivaani Mariapun’s work is contributing valuable insights into breast cancer risk factors.
The post-doctoral researcher at Cancer Research Malaysia (CRMY) has navigated various roles within the organisation during the course of her 15-year tenure, with her PhD thesis contributing to the understanding of mammographic density, an established risk factor for breast cancer in Asian women.
“Finding solutions to challenging problems and reporting new findings that can benefit society is what makes being a researcher worthwhile,” says Shivaani, who obtained her doctoral degree from the University of Nottingham Malaysia this year, under the supervision of Prof Datin Paduka Dr Teo Soo Hwang and Assoc Prof Dr Ho Weang Kee.
“In the past year, my focus has been on publishing the results from my thesis together with my PhD supervisors and other contributors of this work. Two articles have already been published in the journals Breast Cancer Research and Treatment and Breast Cancer Research, and one is currently under peer-review,” says Shivaani, who was awarded with the L’Oreal-Unesco For Women in Science National Fellowship in 2019.
Passion for science
A fascination with genetics as a teenager was what inspired Shivaani’s eventual foray into cancer research.
At 16, the Kuala Lumpur native watched a documentary on the extraordinary applications of genetics which left a lasting impact.
“The documentary depicted the incredible journey of a geneticist and anthropologist who used genetic information to trace human migration over the past 500 centuries,” shares Shivaani.
“I learnt that there is a great amount of information stored within our DNA and unravelling this may help us turn the tide on genetic diseases such as cancer.”
Her love for science drove her to pursue a degree in Genetics and Molecular Biology at Universiti Malaya, where she first dipped her toes into research.
As a self-described “nerdy kid,” she balanced her time between academics and outdoor play, fostering a love for science early on. Her parents’ commitment to education was unwavering, ensuring that both she and her sister, Dr Jeevitha Mariapun – a lecturer at Monash University Malaysia – were well-prepared for their futures.
Shivaani’s passion for science culminated in an internship at the Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation (now CRMY), where she joined the Breast Cancer Research team – a pivotal moment that would shape her career.
Shivaani’s recent work focuses on breast cancer genetic epidemiology, leveraging collaborations with prestigious institutions like the University of Cambridge and the Genome Institute of Singapore.
Inspiring mentors have had a valuable impact on her career.
“Prof Teo Soo Hwang, former chief scientific officer of CRMY, whom I have had the privilege of working with for 15 years, is the founding CEO of Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation, CARIF (now Cancer Research Malaysia, CRMY). She has been a great inspiration and has largely influenced the trajectory of my scientific career,” shares Shivaani.
“Dr Ho Weang Kee is an associate professor at the University of Nottingham Malaysia and has been a collaborating scientist (her area of expertise is statistics) at CRMY for about a decade now. I am extremely grateful for their excellent mentorship, and also for the great support I received from my colleagues and the University throughout my PhD candidature.”
Shivaani’s recent work focuses on breast cancer genetic epidemiology, leveraging collaborations with prestigious institutions like the University of Cambridge and the Genome Institute of Singapore.
She has just started her post-doctoral research training with the Cancer Prevention and Population Science team (CPPS), embarking on a breast cancer genetic epidemiology project.
“We are very fortunate to be collaborating with leading internationally acclaimed scientists who are also incredibly supportive and keen to share their skills and knowledge,” she says. “It enables us to advance our scientific knowledge and move closer towards achieving our research aims, which is ultimately to improve outcomes for breast cancer in Asian women.”
“Science especially in today’s day and age is necessarily collaborative. We therefore get the chance to work with and learn from people from other parts of the world.”
Shivaani’s recent work focuses on breast cancer genetic epidemiology, leveraging collaborations with prestigious institutions like the University of Cambridge and the Genome Institute of Singapore.
Solutions to problems
In scientific research, most of the time those involved do not get to immediately – or ever – see the impact of their work in the grand scheme of things.
“This can be discouraging sometimes, however, just finding solutions to challenging problems we face in our work every day can be quite gratifying,” says Shivaani. “Reporting new findings with the possibility of making a societal impact also makes working as a researcher a worthwhile endeavour.
“Personally, particularly in the last couple of years, I have seen how advancements in medical research have benefited my near and dear ones, and this has been very inspirational.”
Trying to make sense of things that are not fully understood makes research exciting and interesting, however learning to deal with the uncertainty and finding creative solutions can be challenging.
“Another challenge for me is effectively communicating our research findings to people outside of the scientific community. At CRMY, I am grateful that we have a science communication team to support us. Responsible science communication is important so that people are aware of the work that we do, how it may impact them and how they too can get involved in the battle to beat cancer.”
Ensuring their research work is credible is the responsibility of the scientist, which requires a lot of patience when working with data from human study participants.
“There are likely to be factors that may be difficult to control (e.g. environmental exposures and recall bias). We have to therefore learn how to properly deal with these intricacies so that we do not report misleading results and make false conclusions,” says Shivaani.
Funding remains a significant challenge, as larger studies require substantial financial backing.
Nevertheless, Shivaani approaches all these hurdles with resilience, viewing them as opportunities to innovate and adapt.
The battle against breast cancer is ever-present, and Shivaani’s work not only advances scientific understanding but also empowers communities.
This gives us hope of a future where breast cancer can be managed and prevented, with ground-breaking research thanks to people like Shivaani paving the way forward.
