- A scholarship student from the Kingdom has recently become the first Saudi student to obtain a Ph.D.
- in stem cells.
Khalid bin Ibrahim Al-Zir received his degree from the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in southwest Wales.
The Ph.D. thesis centered on cancer resistance mechanisms against current treatments for cancer patients. It also dealt with the functions of stem cells and their applications in replacement of organs (cells) to cure certain diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Professor Ramsay MacFarlane, member of the Institute of Cancer Research, was the supervisor of the Ph.D. thesis.
He described the research as outstanding, adding it had contributed enormously to cancer work at the ICR.
This work will play a pivotal role in cancer research techniques not only in Saudi Arabia but the whole Middle East region, he noted.
