Charles Mullighan is a member (Professor) in the Department of Pathology and Senior Deputy Director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital. He trained as a hematologist in Adelaide with doctoral studies in Oxford England, and joined St Jude in 2004. His research program uses integrated genomic analysis, experimental modelling and drug development to define the drivers and vulnerabilities of acute leukemia. His work has defined the genetic basis of multiple new subtypes of leukemia, and these advances have entered the clinic as new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. He is the recipient of awards including a National Cancer Institute Outstanding Investigator Award, the Meyenburg Prize for Cancer Research, the American Society of Hematology Dameshek Prize, the American Association for Cancer Research – St. Baldrick’s Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement in Pediatric Cancer Research, and election to Fellowship of the Royal Society of London.