You have reached the Web site for the Department of Pathology at the University of Colorado Denver.

Student Questionnaire:
1.    Why did you choose the UC Denver Cancer Biology Program?
I knew that UC Denver was a great place to study cancer from my experience working in a pediatric neuro-oncology

lab on campus before starting graduate school. The faculty here are great and the proximity to the hospitals

make it a great place for translational research.
2.    What labs are you rotating in?
I did my rotations with Dr. Jennifer Richer, Dr. Jim Lambert/Dr. Scott Lucia and Dr. Scott Cramer.
3.    Please describe your project?
I work in a prostate cancer lab that uses a stem cell model to identify novel oncogenes and tumor suppressors. I

am investigating genes that were significantly deleted in SNP arrays as candidate tumor suppressors. I am

currently developing an in vivo RNAi screen to help distinguish novel tumor suppressors from passenger

deletions.
4.    Where did you attend undergraduate school and what was your major/minor?
I went University of Colorado at Boulder and majored in Psychology.
5.    What you did (if anything) between undergraduate and graduate school?
After graduating from college I worked for a small educational consulting firm where I evaluated State and

Federal education programs. I then started working at UC Denver through a summer cancer research fellowship

where I studied pediatric neuro-oncology. I joined this lab as a full time research assistant for about two and

half years before starting medical school at UC Denver. After the first year of medical school I missed research

and transferred into the Biomedical Sciences/Cancer Biology program on campus.  
6.    Other school  affiliated activities/clubs you are involved in?
7.    What do you like to do outside of school?
I recently had a baby and love to spend time with my family. I also love to cook and hang out at our cabin in

the mountains.
8.    What is your favorite thing about Colorado?
The blue sky and sunshine, even in the middle of winter.
9.    Your contact information-
a.    Valerie.Barton@ucdenver.edu
b.    720-939-5070
c.    303-724-3365