American Cancer Society Diversity in Cancer Research Summer Internship Program at Yale Cancer Center

Transcript

• 00:10Diversity is important because having
• 00:13people with different perspectives and
• 00:14different backgrounds
• 00:16really helps to fuel innovation.
• 00:19From different perspectives, you can
• 00:20answer the challenges
• 00:22that are currently limiting the
• 00:23field of cancer research and
• 00:25ultimately treatments for patients.
• 00:28If we restrict the
• 00:30biomedical research community, we're missing
• 00:32out on a lot of
• 00:33talent.
• 00:34And we just can't afford
• 00:36to miss out on that
• 00:37talent.
• 00:38The ACS diversity opportunity for
• 00:40students from underrepresented backgrounds exposure
• 00:41to a really research intensive
• 00:42experience. Our goal here at
• 00:42Yale is to
• 00:44really
• 00:53provide those students not only
• 00:54with intense research, but to
• 00:56also give them the skills
• 00:58to be successful
• 00:59either in applying to a
• 01:00PhD or MD PhD program.
• 01:04I come from a low
• 01:05income background, and so cancer
• 01:07opportunities
• 01:08are pretty
• 01:09sparse where I come from.
• 01:10And so I thought this
• 01:12would be a great opportunity
• 01:13to
• 01:14learn what it's like to
• 01:15conduct research full time, as
• 01:18a career.
• 01:19This is a unique opportunity
• 01:21for me to learn from
• 01:23leading
• 01:23experts,
• 01:24and it is just serving
• 01:26as a bridge toward my
• 01:28goals
• 01:29and, scientific
• 01:31research, both biological and clinical.
• 01:34This was actually my first
• 01:35wet lab research experience, and
• 01:37so this summer has been
• 01:38an amazing and fun journey
• 01:39of skill building and mentorship
• 01:41and overall just learning and
• 01:43getting to know the world
• 01:44of cancer biology and how
• 01:45my research has the ability
• 01:47to actually impact patients.
• 01:50I've had experience
• 01:51with cancer
• 01:53as my dad had it,
• 01:55when I was younger.
• 01:57And since then, I've been
• 01:58really interested in oncology.
• 02:00So I really just wanted
• 02:01a program that I would
• 02:02be able to combine,
• 02:03my clinical interests and also
• 02:06be able to hone in
• 02:07on my research skills and
• 02:08grow as a scientist.
• 02:11Our goal is to really
• 02:12become a family, to really
• 02:14be a support system for
• 02:15those students so when they
• 02:16leave Yale, they'll be able
• 02:17to continue to have our
• 02:19support as they apply for
• 02:20their next steps in their
• 02:21career.
• 02:22Doctor. Rogers organized in a
• 02:24way for us to have,
• 02:25like, career development. We're here
• 02:27our mentors talk about how
• 02:28to create a CV or,
• 02:29like,
• 02:30different research,
• 02:32opportunities that we can get
• 02:33access to, as well as
• 02:35different professionals on all sorts
• 02:36of levels to tell us
• 02:37their journey into academia and
• 02:40science.
• 02:41This has been a very
• 02:43enriching experience.
• 02:44I learned a lot of
• 02:46hands on lab techniques
• 02:48from experienced
• 02:49scientists.
• 02:50I gained a better understanding
• 02:52of the fields.
• 02:53Most importantly, I've gained a
• 02:55lot of confidence in my
• 02:56scientific thinking and ability to
• 02:59test questions that I have
• 03:00through research. Also, the relationships
• 03:02and connections that I've gone
• 03:03through this program are so
• 03:04valuable, and I'll definitely be
• 03:06taking them with me after
• 03:08I leave.
• 03:09The clinical oncology workforce is
• 03:12notably
• 03:13not diverse.
• 03:15For patients who are from
• 03:17underrepresented
• 03:18backgrounds,
• 03:19not seeing people who look
• 03:21anything like them
• 03:22in the clinic
• 03:23really does not help in
• 03:25terms of making people feel
• 03:27comfortable going through
• 03:29what can be very, very
• 03:30difficult treatment.
• 03:33When you're diagnosed with cancer,
• 03:35you're scared.
• 03:36Finding someone that relates to
• 03:38you, someone that understands your
• 03:41possible financial
• 03:43situations,
• 03:45possible medical history,
• 03:47understands your environment,
• 03:50helps lower the stress. Patient
• 03:52and physician relationships
• 03:55are the key to possibly,
• 03:57I think, finding a
• 03:59cure. By diversifying
• 04:01science and by diversifying clinical
• 04:03medicine,
• 04:04it will be a huge
• 04:06step forward for all of
• 04:07oncology.
• 04:08If you don't see it,
• 04:09how can you be it?
• 04:11So the earlier you can
• 04:12expose students to research and
• 04:14realize what impact they can
• 04:15have on the communities and
• 04:17just health in general is
• 04:19really important.