June 26, 2017, Filed Under: 2017, cancer, learningThe Emperor of All Maladies The Emperor of All Maladies book, Photo by Daria Bentley I will be the first to admit that when Dr. Suggs told us we had to read a 472-page book, I was not exactly excited. Honestly, I was dreading it. It was another task on top of all the research papers and lab duties. The book is The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee. Dr. Suggs said this book would help us to learn even more about the fight against cancer, the history, and think about the big picture even within our very specific research projects. I started reading it and I was beyond interested in the material. It was not a typical scientific book with a whole bunch of words I would not know or understand. It was an easy read with lots of purpose. The author, Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, has demonstrated how the fight against cancer is not just one person, but includes all of us. He explains the evolution of cancer from the political, social, and emotional standpoint. I have just started this book and I am already drawn in. I hope The Emperor of All Maladies will not only be a fantastic read, but also something that allows me to keep my research in perspective. We do our research in the hopes to discover new methods and devices to save lives, and this book helps remind myself why the research is so important. Each of our research projects is just a small piece of the puzzle in the fight against cancer. -Daria Bentley, Southern University and A&M College
June 19, 2017, Filed Under: 2017, austin, cancer, researchResearch Dedications Lab Bench. Credit: Guillermo Beckmann. Through our stay here at UT Austin, each Friday before going to work on our individual Labs, we dedicate the week to something. This in order to motivate us to continue working to a cure and better understanding of cancer. The idea was borrowed from the Texas 4000, that is an organization that rides 4000 miles to raise funds for cancer research. Cancer has impacted many lives, and everyone has their own individual story and their own reason to want to beat cancer. Everyone, no matter what their dedications and intentions, is invested in trying to defeat this serious threat that kills millions of people everyday world-wide. Sometimes the dedications don’t have to be in a personal way but it is always something to keep the importance of our research in mind. Sometimes we dedicate to the people that are affected by cancer, and sometimes to the adventures and new thing we will learn that week in our labs and our life. Overall, we have to keep reminding ourselves and everyone that research and fighting against cancer will benefit everyone. As well as it will make us, the researchers, grow personally as a person and build on our skills to become better in our research. Guillermo Beckmann, University of Texas at El Paso Yahir, Andrew, Gabriel, Bianca, Guillermo, and Octavio.
August 9, 2016, Filed Under: 2016, cancer, research, texas4000, ut austinWhat Starts Here Changes The World Dell Medical School visit with Texas 4000 riders (photo by Margo Cousins) This summer we were fortunate to be able visit the Dell Medical School, which opened this year and is welcoming their first 50 students. However, there are still a few buildings under construction, and other administrative things that are yet to be completed. Nonetheless, judging from my experience touring the school alongside the Texas 4000 riders, the Medical School is poised to do great things and accomplish their lofty goals, one of which is transforming the way academic medicine is done. It is a breath of fresh air to hear about people trying to change the way things are done for the better, and have the aspirations of making not only communities better, but ultimately the world a better place. What stood out the most from this visit was that the people who are working tirelessly to get this Medical School up and running understand that the only way to accomplish their goals is with the help of their community, and through their collaboration. A big component of their plan to achieve some of their goals is having platforms through which they can get feedback from the community on ways certain things can be done better. With this information they plan to investigate the efficacy of these suggestions and hopefully publish and implement them if they are proven to be more efficient. With the hope that others will follow their lead. Being a researcher it is music to my ears hearing that some sort of data will be collected to prove what works and what doesn’t. This summer I read something that resonated with me and proves useful in this context: “In god we trust, all others must have data.” This was said by the surgeon Bernard Fisher who was instrumental in proving that the radical mastectomy was not the most efficient way of treating breast cancer. Without a doubt the visit to the medical school was an eye opening experience as was this entire summer at The University of Texas at Austin. -Adiel Hernandez, Univ. of Miami
