Our Team

Heena Desai is a bioinformatician in a translational cancer research lab at the University of Pennsylvania. With experience in whole exome sequencing analysis, polygenic risk score studies, and computational biology, she plays a key role in analyzing complex genetic and phenotypic data for medical research. Heena holds a M.S. in Bioinformatics and Genomics and a B.S. in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Heena grew up playing cricket, badminton, soccer in Mumbai, India where she was born. After moving to the US, she played on her high school’s soccer and tennis teams. Heena started playing softball in spring of 2023 and joined Philadelphia Adult League Softball a few months later.

Watching her parents and brother volunteer when growing up, Heena became passionate about giving back to the community. Heena volunteers with Change Up Sports on a regular basis.

Heena’s hobbies include hiking, camping, gaming, reading, and board games. Heena also enjoys solo traveling and experiencing new cultures. Heena resides in West Philadelphia with her two cats, Lumos and Betty White.