About
Frank Ureña, PhD
I am a physician-scientist — with a doctoral background in molecular biosciences, postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, and ongoing medical training at St. George's University.
Published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, JBC, and JLB. Over 100 citations. Research spanning T-cell biology, biomaterial engineering, and molecular diagnostics.
I have not yet committed to a specialty. I am in medical school to earn clinical context — the kind that makes translational science honest and ensures that what I study in the lab actually matters at the bedside.
Experience
A decade of continuous research and clinical training.
2023 — Present
Grenada / Clinical Rotations, USA
Core and advanced clinical rotations across internal medicine, surgery, and subspecialties. Integrating research exposure into clinical training, with particular attention to immunology-relevant presentations across disciplines.
2022 — 2023
Boston, MA
Dual-lab placement: mechanobiology of cancer-associated fibroblasts in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (Lagares Lab); immune integration in alveolar type 2 organoid models (Medoff Lab). Developed expertise in 3D patient-derived organoid platforms, single-cell approaches, and translational immunology.
Graduate Research Assistant
John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaiʻi ↗2019 — 2023
Honolulu, HI
Doctoral research on miR-15a/16 regulation of T-cell proliferation. Designed and executed GOF mouse model; mapped MEK1–ERK1/2–Elk1 signalling axis. Graduated with PhD in Molecular Biosciences & Bioengineering.
Scientific Assistant
Washington State University Gene Editing Core ↗2019
Pullman, WA
CRISPR guide RNA design and preparation; KO/KI model generation; genotyping and validation pipelines for transgenic models.
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center ↗2018 — 2019
Honolulu, HI
Multiplex diagnostic platform for bladder cancer using cell culture and viral transfection workflows.
Research Assistant III
Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering / Harvard Medical School ↗2016 — 2018
Boston, MA
In vivo and in vitro experimental design; IACUC-approved protocols; immune-material biocompatibility. Core contributor to biomaterial vaccine platform published in Nature Biomedical Engineering.
Research Associate
Toxicon Corp (CRO)
2015 — 2016
Woburn, MA
GLP/GMP surgical studies; TK/PK; multi-species preclinical models; histology and clinical pathology coordination.
Pathology Technician
Lahey Clinic and Medical Center ↗2014 — 2015
Burlington, MA
Autopsy support; surgical specimens; cytology including FISH and ThinPrep methodology.
Personal Statement
“I want to be the kind of physician who can look at a patient who isn’t responding and ask not just ‘what drug failed?’ but ‘why did the biology fail?’ — and then design the experiment to find out.”
That question — from bench to bedside and back — is what has driven every decision in my career: from choosing a PhD over direct MD admission, to pursuing a Harvard postdoc before medical school, to seeking programs with strong physician-scientist tracks.