Career Center

Overview

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is an independent, nonprofit organization providing adult cancer treatment and groundbreaking research focused on cancer and infectious diseases. Based in Seattle, Fred Hutch is the only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in Washington.

With a track record of global leadership in bone marrow transplantation, HIV/AIDS prevention, immunotherapy and COVID-19 vaccines, Fred Hutch has earned a reputation as one of the world's leading cancer, infectious disease and biomedical research centers. Fred Hutch operates eight clinical care sites that provide medical oncology, infusion, radiation, proton therapy and related services, and network affiliations with hospitals in five states. Together, our fully integrated research and clinical care teams seek to discover new cures to the world's deadliest diseases and make life beyond cancer a reality.

At Fred Hutch we value collaboration, compassion, determination, excellence, innovation, integrity and respect. These values are grounded in and expressed through the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion. Our mission is directly tied to the humanity, dignity and inherent value of each employee, patient, community member and supporter. Our commitment to learning across our differences and similarities make us stronger. We seek employees who bring different and innovative ways of seeing the world and solving problems. Fred Hutch is in pursuit of becoming an anti-racist organization. We are committed to ensuring that all candidates hired share our commitment to diversity, anti-racism and inclusion.

The Till Lab is hiring an experienced Research Technician. This position involves working with investigators pursuing the development, and clinical translation, of innovative immunotherapy-based approaches to treat non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The environment is supportive, team oriented, and exciting. The successful applicant will be involved in experiments supporting pre-clinical and clinical projects. The specific research will involve performing correlative assays of patient tissue specimens obtained from clinical trials, developing novel oncolytic virus therapies, and studying the biology of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells.

Responsibilities

• Receive fresh patient tumor biopsies, perform enzymatic digests, and process cells for single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) assay using 10x Chromium kit.
• Generate scRNA-seq libraries for next-generation sequencing.
• Assist in the design, implementation and interpretation of experiments using genetically engineered oncolytic viruses to target B cell lymphomas.
• Produce research-grade oncolytic virus by transfecting packaging cells with vector plasmids and titering virus.
• Assist in the design, implementation and interpretation of human gene therapy experiments using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-expressing T lymphocytes to target B cell lymphomas.
• Produce research-grade lentivirus by transfecting packaging cells with vector plasmids, and concentrating, purifying, and titering lentiviral supernatant.
• Maintain human or murine cell lines in long-term cell culture; transduce them with retroviral or lentiviral vectors encoding chimeric human or murine fusion genes and perform flow cytometry to measure transduction efficiency.
• Conduct in vitro assays testing the function of CAR T cells, including proliferation, cytotoxicity, and cytokine secretion.
• Perform in vitro assays testing the ability of oncolytic viruses to infect target cells and perform fluorescence microscopy to image GFP-expressing infected cells.
• Perform mouse studies to test the efficacy of oncolytic viruses or CAR T cells in mouse models of lymphoma, including intraperitoneal, intravenous, and subcutaneous injections, and tissue harvesting.
• Monitor CAR T cell or oncolytic virus persistence with samples obtained by retroorbital bleeding, and evaluate tumor responses in mouse models using bioluminescent imaging.
• Monitor tumor-bearing mice for distress or other indications for euthanasia and perform euthanasia per IACUC guidelines.
• Perform quality control for sterility, and assess the presence of endotoxin, viruses, bacteria, fungi, mycoplasma and other contaminants in transduced cell lines.
• Assist other lab personnel with immunocompetent mouse experiments, including injections of tumor cells, T cells, and chemotherapeutic agents, tumor measurements, and harvesting of mouse blood, marrow, and lymphoid organs.
• Assist in preparation of manuscripts for publication and presentation of research results at national meetings.
• Serve as a lab manager, including ensuring adequate lab supplies are in stock, coordinating lab chores among lab members, andmaintaining organized freezer inventories.
• Maintain timely, detailed, and organized records of all laboratory experiments.
• Prepare and present written or oral progress reports concerning studies including assembly, organization, and interpretation of data.
• Utilize freezer software to maintain current inventory of cells, virus stocks, and other research samples.
• Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor.
• Work is on-site, 40 hours per week on standard 8-5 schedule.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications for Research Technician II:

• Bachelor's degree in related scientific field.
• At least two years of laboratory experience.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience producing high-titer lentivirus, retrovirus, or other viruses.
• Familiarity with T cell culture and transduction.
• Prior experience working with mice or willingness to be trained in performance of the mouse specific procedures outlined above.
• Comfortable working with replication-competent virus (attenuated measles virus) in a very carefully controlled and monitored setting.
• Experience with 10x Chromium and generating NGS libraries.
• Proficiency in flow cytometry.
• Experience with assay validation and optimization.

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center has a mandatory COVID-19 vaccine requirement, with exceptions only for approved medical or religious accommodations. As a condition of employment, newly hired employees must, prior to their first day of employment: Provide proof of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 ; ORInitiate the accommodations process to request a religious or medical accommodation (medical accommodations require a healthcare provider's certification). A statement describing your commitment and contributions toward greater diversity, equity, inclusion, and antiracism in your career or that will be made through your work at Fred Hutch is requested of all finalists.

The hourly pay range for this position is from $24.96 to $35.53 and pay offered will be based on experience and qualifications. This position may be eligible for relocation assistance.

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center offers employees a comprehensive benefits package designed to enhance health, well-being, and financial security. Benefits include medical/vision, dental, flexible spending accounts, life, disability, retirement, family life support, employee assistance program, onsite health clinic, tuition reimbursement, paid vacation (12-22 days per year), paid sick leave (12-25 days per year), paid holidays (13 days per year), paid parental leave (up to 4 weeks), and partially paid sabbatical leave (up to 6 months).

Our Commitment to Diversity

We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) Employer. We are committed to cultivating a workplace in which diverse perspectives and experiences are welcomed and respected. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, age, disability (physical or mental), marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, political ideology, or membership in any other legally protected class. We are an Affirmative Action employer. We encourage individuals with diverse backgrounds to apply and desire priority referrals of protected veterans. If due to a disability you need assistance/and or a reasonable accommodation during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to our Employee Services Center at hrops@fredhutch.org or by calling 206-667-4700.