My current research is focused on understanding how the stromal cells in the prostate tumor microenvironment contribute to tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Leveraging in vitro techniques, in vivo models, and patient samples, I am studying how steroid receptors orchestrate the stromal response to prostate cancer development within different mesenchymal cell populations present in the tumor microenvironment. My ultimate goal is to perform “circular research”, from the bed to the bench and back to the bed. I received my MD and PhD in Molecular Medicine from the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan (Italy). Since my first experiences in the lab, I have always been fascinated by the interplay between the different components of the tissue microenvironment – including stromal cell populations, the extracellular matrix, and the microbiome – in the development and progression of genitourinary diseases. After earning my degrees, I moved to New York in 2022 to pursue postdoctoral training in the lab of Dr. Massimo Loda in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, where I am currently working on the pathobiology of prostate cancer. I am grateful for the empowering research environments I have been growing in since the beginning of my research journey, and for the caring mentors I have encountered along the way. These inspiring figures helped me focus on my long-term aspiration: pursue a career in “circular research”, from the bed to the bench and back to the bed. I envision my future career in a diverse, multidisciplinary, close-knit environment where physicians and researchers synergistically cooperate to improve patient care.