ACTREC Project Assistant 2026: HDAC–Rectal Cancer Research, Protein Biochemistry Walk-in

ACTREC Project Assistant 2026: a four-month rectal-cancer research appointment

Tata Memorial Centre's Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC), Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, is holding a walk-in interview on 5 November 2026 for a Project Assistant to work on a defined cancer research project. The institute's advertisement is ACTREC/ADVT-209/2026, dated 15 October 2026; the recruitment page was uploaded on 16 October 2026. It is a project appointment for four months, not a permanent scientific or general administrative vacancy.

The project is titled “Association of HDAC expression with treatment response in rectal cancer patients after Neoadjuvant therapy.” HDAC stands for histone deacetylase; the research question, as stated, relates an expression measure to patients' response following preoperative treatment. This is the project's published subject, not a disclosed laboratory protocol or a guarantee that the appointed assistant will independently perform any particular assay.

Eligibility: a biological-sciences degree is only the first test

The minimum educational route is a B.Sc. or equivalent in Life Sciences or Basic Biological Sciences from a government-recognised institution. The notice is specific about subject area: a degree from an unrelated stream should not be treated as automatically equivalent merely because it is a bachelor's degree. It gives no minimum marks percentage and no alternate direct qualification route such as a standalone diploma.

Two conditions materially narrow the pool. One year of experience is essential, and expertise in protein biochemistry is mandatory. These are not framed as desirable preferences. A newly qualified life-sciences graduate who lacks the required experience should not read the broad B.Sc. heading as sufficient eligibility. Conversely, an applicant with a longer general office or unrelated laboratory tenure should not assume that experience alone proves the specific protein-biochemistry expertise.

Result-awaited candidates are expressly ineligible. Anyone still awaiting the qualifying degree's result should not rely on the walk-in date to complete the degree later. The ad does not publish an age ceiling, category-specific age concessions, registration-number requirement or reservation-wise seat allocation. Those data points should remain “not specified,” rather than imported from unrelated ACTREC or Tata Memorial Centre advertisements.

Where the scientific fit matters

HDAC-expression studies concern molecular features linked to cancer biology, while neoadjuvant therapy refers to treatment delivered before the principal definitive treatment. That background helps explain why the advertisement asks for protein biochemistry, rather than treating this as a generic data-entry or office-assistant job. However, the current one-page notice does not enumerate specific techniques such as Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, immunoprecipitation, cell culture or clinical sample handling as compulsory. Applicants may explain techniques they have actually used, but the job article must not turn plausible experimental methods into invented eligibility rules.

The candidate should be able to describe their contribution to prior research, what protein-related work they performed personally, and how they documented or interpreted it. These are preparation suggestions, not a published ACTREC interview syllabus or scoring rubric. No written examination, fixed technical test, MCQ pattern, shortlisting cut-off or separate interview weightage is announced for advertisement 209/2026.

Walk-in logistics: 10 a.m. reporting is not the same as a 10 a.m. test

Eligible candidates are instructed to report to 3rd Floor, Khanolkar Shodhika, ACTREC, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai – 410210, on Thursday, 5 November 2026. The document mentions reporting at 10:00 a.m. and specifies a 10:00–10:30 a.m. reporting window. It does not give a distinct interview start time, a written-test schedule or an alternative online attendance facility.

Bring a recent CV, a recent passport-size photograph, original certificates and photocopies supporting education and work experience, plus identity proof. Aadhaar is described as preferable, not the sole accepted identification document. Prepare a clearly arranged evidence set that connects the required one-year experience and protein-biochemistry work to your CV. The notification does not instruct candidates to pay an application charge, but it also does not explicitly state an application fee of zero; do not publish “free application” as an official fee declaration.

No prior email submission, upload portal, telephone booking or online form is specified for this walk-in. Candidates should verify updates on the institution's recruitment listing before travelling. The notice does not offer a travel allowance or expressly forbid it; no TA/DA entitlement can be inferred.

₹25,000 consolidated for four months: how to read the offer

The monthly figure is ₹25,000 consolidated. On the assumption that all four announced months are served and the stated monthly rate is paid throughout, the arithmetic is ₹1,00,000 across four months before any applicable deductions. This is only a calculation based on the notified rate and term, not an independently notified lump-sum guarantee. The advertisement does not specify benefits, HRA, employer contributions, tax treatment, payment date, annual increments or an extension mechanism.

Because it is explicitly an on-project role, applicants should not equate this appointment with a permanent Department of Atomic Energy post or with continuing Tata Memorial Centre service after the four months. The precise employment terms will depend on the offer issued to the selected candidate; the one-page notice does not publish a broader service-rule schedule.

Important: distinguish advertisement 209/2026 from the older project notice

ACTREC advertised a Project Assistant on the same HDAC/rectal-cancer research theme under advertisement 45/2025. That older March 2025 notice is a different recruitment cycle, not proof that the present post was filled or that its old requirements still apply. The 2025 version described a different degree route and ₹20,000 monthly pay, whereas the current 209/2026 notice specifically calls for B.Sc./equivalent in Life or Basic Biological Sciences, one essential year of experience, mandatory protein-biochemistry expertise and ₹25,000 per month. Do not merge their application deadlines, salary details or eligibility conditions. This comparison is based on ACTREC's own archived PDF, not on an unofficial jobs site.

What is confirmed, and what is still unannounced

The recruitment can be tracked as official notice → walk-in interview/document presentation → selection decision, but only the first two activities have source-confirmed dates. No admit card, result date, answer key, exam syllabus, qualifying score, shortlist or selection-list release is announced. Accordingly, there is no fabricated examination or result record for this advertisement.

Primary official sources: ACTREC advertisement 209/2026 and ACTREC recruitment listing. The 2025 archive notice is cited solely to distinguish the older advertisement from this one.