Gareth Thomas

Professor Gareth Thomas is a clinical pathologist and tumour biologist at the University of Southampton's Faculty of Medicine. His research focuses on fibroblast biology, tumour microenvironment dynamics, and cancer immunotherapy resistance mechanisms.

• Faculty of Medicine (University of Southampton)
• Institute for Life Sciences
• Centre for Cancer Immunology

Thomas's work characterizes cancer-associated fibroblast (CAF) subpopulations and their interactions with immune cells, aiming to develop translational therapies that overcome immunotherapy resistance in head and neck cancers. His team employs multi-omics approaches and collaborates with industry partners.

Recent publications highlight trends in single-cell analysis of fibroblast heterogeneity (2025), APOBEC3 gene regulation in squamous cancers (2025), and novel stromal targeting strategies (2022). Key collaborators include Professor Emma King and Cancer Research UK.

• 2022 AACR Most Cited Paper Award
• 2013 Royal Society of Biology Fellow
• 2011 BAOMS Members Prize
• 2008 IAOP Rod Cawson Prize
• 2003 Health Foundation Fellowship

Thomas supervises 27 PhD students (16 main, 11 co) and 6 MD students (1 main, 5 co), with trainees winning 13 local, 17 national, and 6 international research prizes. His lab comprises 3-4 postdocs, 2-4 PhD students, and 3 medical laboratory scientists.