Prof. Mills' research focuses on the cross-talk between metabolism and transcription in the progression of cancer with particular reference to prostate cancer. Prof. Mills received his PhD from the University of Liverpool in 2000 focussing on regulators of homotypic early endosome fusion.  From 2000-2003 I worked in Dr. Harvey McMahon's laboratory in Cambridge on molecular drivers of clathrin-mediate endocytosis.  From 2003-2010 I established and led the Uro-Oncology Research Group in Cambridge alongside Professor David Neal focussing on the contribution of the androgen receptor to prostate cancer progression.  I led a research in the Nordic EMBL Molecular Medicine Centre (NCMM) in Oslo from 2010-2015 identifying genetic determinants of prostate cancer risk and the impact of metabolic dysregulation and stress response signalling on prostate cancer.  In 2015 I established a group at Queen's University Belfast continuing to study these themes in the context of radiotherapy response.  In 2017 I became John Black Associate Professor of Prostate Cancer at the University of Oxford and subsequently John Black Professor of Prostate Cancer continuing to work on these themes and developing interests in spatial biology and tissue imaging to relate these biologies to cell types and tissue pathology.

Prof. Mills' research aims to uncover how cancer cells acquire metabolic dependencies and survive metabolic and therapeutic stresses in the course of disease progression. By understanding this evolution alongside genomic changes and ultimately in a multi-cellular tissue-relevant context this can improve disease detection, patient risk stratification and treatment selection.

My main area of responsibility is research in the area of cancer cell biology and metabolism. I also teach undergraduate students and have experience in teaching clinical biochemistry with a particular focus on metabolism and cancer biomarkers.