Amal Qattan

Dr. Amal Qattan, a Scientist in the Department of Molecular Oncology at King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. She is also Associate Professor in the College of Medicine at Alfaisal University in the same city. She worked as Assistant Professor in the School of Medicine and Health Science at George Washington (GW) University in the US for 5 years between 2017 and 2021. She is a member of the Women in Science International League, New York, US since 2017, and a fellow of the Royal Academy of Science International Trust, New York, US since 2017. She gained her PhD from the Medical School of University College London (UCL), London, UK. Dr. Qattan’s primary interest is in precision medicine using state-of-the-art technologies in a research approach based on systems biology. Her research through a proactive and strategic approach, is dedicated to understanding aggressive and metastatic cancers, rare cancers, the mechanisms of dissemination and dormancy (DCCs/DTCs), and targeted therapies in order to identify new therapeutic targets, including those involving competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs). The overall aims of her research work are not only to diagnose cancer early but also to study patient responses and identify drug resistance within a comprehensive systems biology framework. She is currently a principal investigator and has written many scientific publications and book chapters. She is a regular reviewer for internationally reputed journals and publishing houses. Dr. Qattan’s work has been recognized locally and globally in the awards that she has received. She has been invited to speak at international conferences in the US, UK, Paris and Amsterdam and has received awards including the L’OREAL UNESCO Award-'For Women in Science” (FWIS) in November, 2017; CTRC-AACR, Best of San-Antonio Breast Cancer in February, 2016; NGHA, SA; and the Recognition Award from the Centre of Excellence, where the work was mentioned and published among the International Innovations. She was nominated to speak at the United Nations Headquarters (UNHQ) in New York-US in February, 2019 at the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. She was nominated to speak at the United Nations Head Quarter (UNHQ) in the General Assembly Hall (GA) in New York-US in February, 2020. In December 2022, She received the Outstanding Leadership Award for her exceptional achievements in the field of healthcare at the InterContinental, Dubai, UAE, held from December 16-18, 2022. She has been invited to speak at many other international conferences where her work has been recognized. Her vision as a scientist is to incorporate the most recent advances tools in diagnostics and therapy to improve the outcome of treatment, and in turn, survival. She believes that one of the essential qualities of a scientist is an interest in humanity. Her ultimate goal is to help patients with aggressive and metastatic cancer and to continue contributing to humanity and the world by enriching scientific knowledge. She hopes that her work will lead to new discoveries for the intellectual enrichment of the scientific community that engages in research.