Professor Helen Rizos is a cancer cell biologist with an international reputation in the field of melanoma senescence, tumour suppressor proteins and oncoproteins. Her work combines genetic analyses of melanoma tumours with functional molecular and cell biology in order to understand the role and regulation of genes and cellular pathways that influence the development and therapeutic response of melanoma.

Professor Rizos joined Macquarie University in 2013, and is Research Lead in the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences. She has been awarded Senior Research Fellowships from the Cancer Institute NSW and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). She is a Faculty member of the Melanoma Institute Australia, where she is Chair of the Research committee theme.