Team

People in the Cancer Data Science Laboratory

Team

Different backgrounds, shared questions.

Our laboratory is based in Trieste. Some members work across partner institutes and are co-supervised with collaborating principal investigators.

Leadership

Principal investigator

Giulio Caravagna
Principal investigator

Giulio Caravagna, PhD

Email Meet Giulio
Research interests
  • Cancer evolution and tumour phylogenetics
  • Machine learning for cancer genomics
  • Bayesian inference and computational oncology
  • Treatment resistance and disease forecasting
Positions
  • Associate Professor, Department of Mathematics and Geosciences, University of Trieste
  • Core Faculty, PhD programme in Applied Data Science & Artificial Intelligence, University of Trieste
  • Adjunct Faculty, PhD programme in Theoretical and Scientific Data Science, SISSA
  • Honorary Fellow, The Institute of Cancer Research, UK
Training
  • 2017–20, The Institute of Cancer Research, UK, with Andrea Sottoriva
  • 2015–17, University of Edinburgh, UK, with Guido Sanguinetti
  • 2011–15, University of Milan-Bicocca, Italy, with Giancarlo Mauri and Marco Antoniotti
  • 2011, PhD in Computer Science, University of Pisa
  • BSc and MSc in Computer Science, University of Pisa

Scientists

Postdoctoral researchers

Nicola Calonaci

Nicola Calonaci

Email
Research interests
  • Statistical physics of biological systems
  • Computational oncology
  • Probabilistic modelling of tumour evolution
Background
  • 2021, PhD in Physics and Chemistry of Biological Systems, SISSA.
  • MSc in Physics, University of Pisa.
  • BSc in Physics, University of Pisa.
Alice Antonello

Alice Antonello

Email PhD thesis
Research interests
  • Therapy resistance in acute myeloid leukaemia
  • Bayesian inference
  • Longitudinal cancer genomics
  • Quantitative and computational biology
Background

AIRC Postdoctoral Fellow (independent fellowship).

  • 2025, PhD in Applied Data Science & Artificial Intelligence, University of Trieste.
  • MSc in Quantitative and Computational Biology, University of Trento.
  • BSc in Biotechnology, University of Turin.
Elena Buscaroli

Elena Buscaroli

Email PhD thesis
Research interests
  • Bayesian inference of lineage evolution
  • Cancer molecular profiling
  • Gene therapy
  • Single-cell and high-throughput sequencing
Background
  • MSc in Data Science and Scientific Computing, University of Trieste.
  • BSc in Genetics, University of Bologna.
Lucrezia Valeriani

Lucrezia Valeriani

Email PhD thesis
Research interests
  • Genetic and epigenetic tumour evolution
  • Computational cancer genomics
  • Machine learning for molecular data
Background
  • MSc in Data Science and Scientific Computing, University of Trieste.
  • BSc in Genetics, University of Bologna.

Researchers in training

PhD researchers

Davide Testa
ADSAI · 2025–28

Davide Testa

Email
Research interests
  • Computational immunology
  • Allogeneic transplantation
  • Cancer evolution and treatment response
Background

Co-supervised with Luca Vago at IRCCS San Raffaele.

  • Medicine, University of Pisa.
  • Specialty in Immunology, University of Pisa.
Giorgia Gandolfi
ADSAI · 2024–27

Giorgia Gandolfi

Email
Research interests
  • Cancer bioinformatics
  • Machine learning for tumour profiling
  • High-throughput sequencing
Background

Sponsored by IRCCS San Raffaele and co-supervised with Giovanni Tonon.

  • MSc in Bioinformatics, University of Bologna.
  • BSc in Biology, University of Parma.
Virginia Gazziero
ADSAI · 2024–27

Virginia Gazziero

Email
Research interests
  • Functional genomics
  • Cancer immunology
  • Machine learning for molecular data
Background

Sponsored by Toscana Life Sciences and co-supervised with Anna Kabanova.

  • MSc in Functional Genomics, University of Trieste.
  • BSc in Biotechnology, University of Insubria.
Eriseld Krasniqi
ADSAI · 2024–27

Eriseld Krasniqi

Email
Research interests
  • Clinical oncology
  • Precision medicine
  • Machine learning for clinical and genomic cancer data
Background

Sponsored by the IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute.

  • Degree in Medicine and Surgery, University of Rome Tor Vergata.
  • Specialty in Medical Oncology, University of Rome Tor Vergata.
Azad Sadr
ADSAI · 2024–27

Azad Sadr

Email
Research interests
  • Machine learning
  • Computational modelling
  • Optimisation and data-driven methods in cancer research
Background
  • MSc in Industrial Engineering, Wayne State University, USA.
  • BSc in Industrial Engineering, Kar Higher Education Institute, Iran.
Sara Cocomello
ADSAI · 2024–27

Sara Cocomello

Email
Research interests
  • Statistical learning
  • Cancer data science
  • Computational modelling
Background
  • MSc in Data Science and Scientific Computing, University of Trieste.
  • BSc in Economics.
Elena Rivaroli
ADSAI · 2024–27

Elena Rivaroli

Email
Research interests
  • Machine learning
  • Cancer genomics
  • Scientific computing
Background
  • MSc in Data Science and Scientific Computing, University of Trieste.
  • BSc in Computer Engineering.
ADSAI · 2025–28

Edoardo Insaghi

Email
Research interests
  • Statistical learning
  • Bayesian modelling
  • Applied data science
Background

Co-supervised with Leonardo Egidi.

Students

MSc and BSc researchers

Eleonora Tiozzo
MSc · 2026

Eleonora Tiozzo

Research interests
  • Data science
  • Scientific computing
  • Computational oncology
Background

MSc programme in Data Science and Scientific Computing. Co-supervised with Nicola Calonaci.

Fabio Zinzone
AIRC4Youth · MSc · 2025

Fabio Zinzone

Research interests
  • Physics
  • Cancer data science
  • Computational oncology
Background

MSc programme in Physics. Co-supervised with Giorgia Gandolfi.

AIRC4Youth · UniUPO · 2026

Lorenzo Bottelli

Research interests
  • To be updated.
Background

TBD

Visitors

Visiting PhD researchers

2024

Daniel Colic

Frank Supek’s group · Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Barcelona.

2024

Carmen Oroperv

Søren Besenbacher’s group · Aarhus University.

2023

Nair Varela Ruoco

David Posada’s group · Biomedical Research Centre, University of Vigo.

Where they are now

Alumni

PhD researcher

Giovanni Santacatterina

Postdoc at St. Anna Children’s Cancer Research Institute, Vienna.

PhD thesis
PhD researcher

Katsiaryna Davydzenka

Current position to be confirmed.

Student

Nicola Cortinovis

Current position to be confirmed.

Student

Andrea Buscema

Current position to be confirmed.

Postdoctoral researcher

Riccardo Bergamin

Current position to be confirmed.

PhD researcher

Salvatore Milite

AI Scientist at GSK, Zurich.

PhD thesis
Research associate

Brandon Hastings

PhD researcher at the University of Nottingham.

Student

Emanuele Ruoppolo

PhD researcher at Helmholtz Munich.

PhD researcher

Arianna Tasciotti

AI Engineer at Leonardo S.p.A.

PhD thesis
PhD researcher

Lucrezia Patruno

Postdoctoral researcher at University College London.

PhD thesis
Student

Lorenzo Taroni

Software developer at Advancia Technology.

Student

Abdula Khalus

Software developer at AI Factory.

Student

Clara Canavese

PhD researcher at SISSA and Human Technopole.

Student

Francesco Favagrossa

MSc thesis in Statistics at Milano-Bicocca; current position to be confirmed.