Maria Peiris Pages
Lecturer
Biography
Lecturer in Biochemistry and Biomedical Science | Biochemistry Programme Lead Maria joined Chester Medical School as a Lecturer in Biochemistry and Biomedical Science, bringing over 12 years of research experience in cancer biology. Over these years, her research has focused on understanding the tumour microenvironment, cancer stem cells, liquid biopsies for early cancer detection, and the mechanisms of cancer metastasis.
Teaching and Supervision
Maria is the programme leader for BSc Biochemistry, and teaches on both the undergraduate and postgraduate courses offered by Chester Medical School. She is module leader for: MD4011 Introduction to Biochemistry MD6042 Biochemistry Communications She also teaches across the Medical School, across levels and programmes including BSc Biomedical Science, BSc Pharmacology, BSc Biochemistry and MRes. She teaches in the following modules: MD4002 Cell Biology MD5016 - Pathophysiology MD5017 - Biochemistry & Metabolic Regulation MD5018 Diagnostics and Therapeutics MD6029 Dissertation MD7100 Research dissertations
Research and Knowledge Exchange
Maria's research passion lies on liquid biopsies for the early detection of cancer, with a particular emphasis on primary and secondary brain tumours. The focus of her investigations is on how circulating tumour cells (CTCs) and other biomarkers can provide insights into metastatic progression and guide the development of early diagnostic tools. In her previous research at CRUK, she used circulating-tumour cell patient-derived models (CDX) to study metastatic processes in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), exploring differences in metastatic proclivity and tissue tropism. Her work employed single-cell RNA sequencing to uncover molecular events that enable CTCs to seed and establish metastases in the brain microenvironment, with the ultimate goal of identifying therapeutic targets to prevent metastasis and improve patient survival. More recently, she has focused on applying liquid biopsy-based proteomics to identify biomarkers for the early detection of brain cancer, aiming to translate these findings into clinical practice. She welcomes collaborations and discussions on early cancer detection, tumour biology, and translational research, aiming to bridge the gap between scientific discovery and clinical application.