Sumiya K.

How Fred Hutch shaped what I want my future career to be

This summer I worked at Fred Hutch as an explorer this has shaped my idea of science in new ways, before I thought science was just mixing chemicals in beakers and seeing what would happen, but now I know it's more than that it is taking a question and testing it out with a multitude of different processes that reveal how it works and what happens. Additionally, the many guest speakers who shared their stories have helped me see my path more clearly than ever before.

My time at Fred Hutch has inspired me and what careers I want to pursue. The main thing that has influenced my decision and the path I wish to take is a visit from Dr. Norquist. Her work as a gynecologist and surgeon aligns with what I originally wanted to do but seeing her maintain that career while also working in the lab and furthering research that will help save lives in the future is truly inspiring, and it makes me think that I can do the same. Her visit provided me with some clarity on the logistics of becoming a surgeon and specializing in a particular field of medicine. She also helped me understand the science behind reproductive cancers and breast cancer. She explained that the BRCA1 gene is most commonly mutated in breast cancer cases, is a tumor suppressor, so under normal circumstances it would have stopped tumors from forming by stopping the cell division process, but if this is mutated the cells will just keep dividing and they wont have anything regulating them and then they can become cancerous as they divide and mutate more.

This was Dr. Norquist’s talk during the program

Scientists have discovered a few ways to treat this, like chemo, radiation, and surgery. Chemo is a chemical that is injected into the patient and works to kill fast-dividing cells. This is helpful because it will certainly kill the cancer cells due to their nature, but it will also kill other fast-growing cells like hair, skin, and nails, so this can hurt the patient and some cancers are more resistant to chemo than others, another problem with this is that the cancer cells can build up a resistance to the treatment, so after a while chemo stops being effective. Radiation works by giving such a high level of radiation that no cell can survive, and this eliminates the risk of cancer mutating, but it is limited to a few cancers, so it won't work with all of them, and can cause side effects like fatigue and nausea. Surgery is a limited solution because it will only work in the early stages of cancer, and if it is a later stage, then it becomes completely useless. Also, surgery needs to be followed by chemo to make sure that all of the cancer cells are eliminated.

In conclusion, Dr. Norquist has inspired my path in medicine because of her contributions to the field, not only as a doctor but as a scientist as well. Her lecture has shown me that my goals aren’t as impossible as I thought, and that I can do this if I put in the effort, I can do what she does, and still have time for my life as well, her talk has given me the knowledge to put my plan into motion and now I know what to do next and I have a plan.

This is a picture of me and my lab partner, Moriah, who is now one of my friends. This program has been more than just a learning experience; it has pushed me out of my comfort zone, and I have made friendships that will last forever, and I will stay connected even after this program.