Brian Cunningham

Brian Cunningham

Research Program Leader, Cancer Center at Illinois

Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering

Areas of Research

Biomarkers, Biomedical Imaging Technology, Biosensor, Cancer Biomarkers, Cancer Diagnostics, Cervical Cancer, Electrical/Computer Engineering, Imaging, Nanotechnology, Oral Cancer, Prostate Cancer, Radiology, RNA, Sensors

Research Program and Theme

Cancer Technology and Data Science | Molecular Measurement

Research Focus

Brian Cunningham’s research is developing biosensors and detection instruments for pharmaceutical high throughput screening, disease diagnostics, point-of-care testing, life science research, and environmental monitoring. He led a team of researchers to develop a method to capture and count cancer-associated microRNAs with a technique named Photonic Resonator Absorption Microscopy (PRAM) that was sensitive enough to detect small amounts of known prostate cancer markers in a patient’s serum. In collaboration with CCIL Research Program Leader Brendan Harley’s research group, his group developed PC-enhanced microscopy for high-resolution imaging. It was able to image stem cells and cancer cells interacting with ECM materials. The Cunningham lab also developed PC-enhanced fluorescence assays for early cancer diagnosis, effective for breast cancer biomarkers.

Education

  • Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois, 1990

Campus Affiliations

Select Honors and Recognitions

  • IEEE Fellow, 2012
  • NAI Fellow, 2013
  • AIMBE Fellow, 2013
  • AAAS Fellow, 2016

Why I Study Cancer

A Closer Look at Brian Cunningham’s Research

What You Might Not Know About Brian Cunningham