Francesca Lessi

Francesca Lessi is a molecular biologist whose research focuses on glioblastoma and osteosarcoma, with a strong emphasis on the study of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and single-cell analysis. She is responsible for the Single Cell Genomics Laboratory, where she has developed and optimized advanced techniques for isolating and characterizing CTCs using technologies such as Parsortix and DEPArray.

Since 2013, she has been working at the Fondazione Pisana per la Scienza (FPS), where she is part of Dr. Mazzanti’s team. Within this group, she contributes to a multidisciplinary approach to studying tumor biology, focusing in particular on the genomic and molecular profiling of cancer. Her work combines single-cell analysis with next-generation sequencing and other genomic platforms to identify key alterations involved in tumor evolution and resistance.

Her research explores the biological and genetic profiles of CTCs, comparing them with primary tumors and recurrences or metastases. In glioblastoma, her studies aim to understand the role of CTCs, cells that reflect the tumor’s characteristics and may contribute to recurrence development. In osteosarcoma, she investigates the molecular mechanisms underlying disease progression and therapy resistance, with the goal of identifying early signs of metastasis through the detection and characterization of CTCs.

Dr. Lessi’s work is guided by the idea that liquid biopsy, and in particular CTC analysis, represents a powerful, minimally invasive approach for tumor monitoring and personalized medicine. She believes that understanding the molecular features of each individual tumor cell can open new avenues for targeted therapies.

In 2022, she was awarded a two-year FPS research grant for the project “Circulating tumor cells as a non-invasive glioblastoma approach to study recurrence events and develop a challenging diagnostic tool”, further supporting her innovative research on liquid biopsy strategies in brain cancer.

She holds a Master’s degree in Biological Sciences, a PhD in Experimental and Molecular Oncology, and a Specialization in Clinical Pathology from the University of Pisa. She also spent time at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics in Oxford, where she deepened her expertise in cancer molecular biology.