Going into the Fred Hutch VECR program I didn’t know much about scientific research. I’ve always enjoyed science for as long as I can remember. Growing up I’d dream of becoming a famous scientist one day. Having gone through the program my desire of becoming a researcher has shifted but nonetheless I’ve gained a deep respect for the people who do it. Learning the background of each guest speaker opened my mind up to different career paths within scientific research, and the dedication required to become a researcher.
To start with during my time in the VECR program, I enjoyed learning about the hallmarks of cancer, immunotherapy used to treat cancer and the process that treatments must go through before they are approved for general consumption by the FDA, but it was learning about imposter syndrome from Alicia Morales that stuck with me the most because it was an experience I related to a lot. Imposter syndrome as Alicia puts it “reflects a belief that you’re inadequate, a fraud/or incompetent failure despite evidence that indicates you’re skilled and quite successful.” A feeling I’ve felt one too many times, but could never put a name to it. After hearing Alica’s experience with it while working at the Hutch I started to think of times where I’ve felt a similar way. And it made me realize that there was nothing wrong with having imposter syndrome because it’s just part of the process. Aside from my experience in the VECR I’ve looked into some areas of research at the Hutch.
One area of research at The Hutch that piques my interest is Dr. Matthias Stephan’s work in nanotechnology. Dr. Stephan is an Immunobioengineer at the Hutch working to use material science to help boost the body’s natural ability to fight cancer. In his most recent work he tackled the issue of delivering cancer hunting T-cells in high enough concentration to eliminate solid tumors. Unlike leukemia which is spread throughout the body’s bloodstream, solid tumors contain a high concentration of cancerous cells that have the ability to create an isolated environment within the body. These factors make it hard to use immunotherapies since they can not be delivered safely in high enough concentration to kill the tumor. Dr. Stephan’s solution uses microscopic stents (small meshed tubes) to deliver CAR T-cells directly into solid tumors at high enough concentration, where the T-cells can penetrate into the tumor, and without flooding the body with CAR T-cells. In the future, Dr. Stephan hopes his innovation can be used as an off the shelf treatment for solid tumors. I chose this topic because bioengineering combines two of my favorite subjects engineering and biology. Having grown up as an outdoorsy person I’ve come to appreciate the complexity of nature as well as the structured machine. That we can tap into with engineering.
While it wasn’t the experience I expected, I am nonetheless grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in the Fred Hutch VECR program this summer. It was an awesome experience to hear from researchers at the Hutch about their work and the path they took to get to where they are now in their scientific career. I hope the Hutch continues to inspire the next generation of scientists.
Normal T-cells getting a little extra oomph (From facebook.com/pedromics)
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