Excitement and Passion Fuel Research Assistant’s Work in Neuro-Oncology

As a young boy, Vincent Law excelled in most his school subjects. But it wasn’t until a high school biology teacher inspired him that he decided to pursue science as a career.

He majored in Biology and while in grad school, he became focused on cancer as his area of interest, particularly neuro-oncology.

“I took a few courses about neuro, and I got more interested in the human brain,” Law said. “The rest is history.”

Today, Law, who was born in Hong Kong and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, is a neuro-oncology research associate in the lab of Peter Forsyth, MD, at Moffitt Cancer Center. Their mission is to advance science toward a cure for brain tumors. It’s not science fiction, he says, and he sees hope on the horizon.

“I commend patients, families and survivors for their bravery and their strength,” Law said. “They have such a will to live, and I want to tell them that there is hope.”

When he’s not working in the lab, Law, 41, spends a lot of time with patients and their families, especially in Washington, D.C. on Capitol Hill. There, he advocates for more research funding and promotes the advances labs like his are making in the field of neuro-oncology.

Vincent Law regularly speaks to lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. to advocate for more research funding.

Specifically, Law has been working on developing better treatment options for leptomeningeal disease, a rare complication of several different types of cancer, including melanoma. It occurs when tumor cells migrate to the cerebrospinal fluid and the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal column known as the meninges.

The prognosis for these patients is extremely poor and there is no effective treatment. However, through collaborations with other programs and institutions, Law sees a brighter future.

“Our lab is working on a treatment strategy where we use dendritic cells as a way to train the immune system to fight against leptomeningeal disease,” Law said. “We are working with our teams in the breast cancer labs because they use dendritic cell vaccine treatments for breast cancer.”

Law said this research could unveil similar strategies for leptomeningeal patients and that funding has driven research to some exciting early results.

“We’ve made advances and have submitted to the FDA for a phase 1 trial at Moffitt,” Law said. “That’s a tremendous step and gives us a look at how lab work applies to patient care.”

The work excites Law, of course, because of its impact on patients. But it also excites him professionally. He sees himself and researchers like him as pioneers, who are on the cutting edge of discoveries that could change lives around the world.

“It doesn’t matter what area of research, you are the expert of what you are doing,” Law said. “I’ve talked about this with patients and to senators on Capitol Hill, we’re living in the moment of pioneers, and I feel we are very close to curing one type of cancer. I hear other scientists talking about their work and you hear of these breakthroughs. It’s amazing.”

When he's not in the research lab, Law enjoys exploring the outdoors.

Law describes the experience as surreal, and says he has many heroes in the scientific community. His most recent hero is Jennifer Doudna, PhD, the biochemist known for her pioneering work in CRISPR gene editing, which earned her the 2020 Nobel Prize in chemistry along with co-discoverer Emmanuelle Charpentier, PhD.

“Her work is one of the most recent big breakthroughs in science, and CRISPR changed the game,” Law said. “Almost like when James Watson and Francis Crick proposed the double helix. It’s a knowledge that is universal and impacts how we do science in general.”

That excitement, alongside encouragement from his family still living in Canada, continues to fuel Law’s passion for research. He knows a cure is inevitable, but he’s hesitant to put a timeline on it.

“I feel like we’re so close and I don’t know if we’re going to cure it in my lifetime,” Law said. “There are still things we’re trying to figure out, but the answers are there, and through collaboration and conversation, we will get there.”