My first day at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center was this Tuesday. I went through the hospital orientation, had several meetings, and became familiar with the Cedars-Sinai campus. I will be working in the Barbara and Marvin Davis Building (the tall building pictured above), also referred to as the Burns and Allen Research Institute. I will be in Dr. Christopher Wheeler's Dendritic Cell Vaccination lab which is a part of the Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institue. Dendritic cell vaccine is made by pulsing a patient's dendritic cells (cells that elicit an immune response) with tumor lysate. This causes the patient's body to combat the tumor more effectively. My research focus for the summer has not been finalized, but it may involve testing to see which cell killing pathways (perforin or rapid response) chemotherapy and endogenous anti-tumor T-cell activity affect, and how that influences tumor growth. This research will involve cell culture, flow cytometry, brain surgery on mice, and more. I am so excited to get started on my research because it is fascinating material and it is clinically relevant. In addition to working in the lab, I will have the opportunity to shadow Dr. Black and other neurosurgeons at Cedars-Sinai! How cool is that?? I already sat in on the Tumor Board this Wednesday, and it was very interesting. First, however, I am flying to New York City tonight to attend the awards ceremony where I will be presented the award by Pauletta and Denzel Washington. I know that I am going to have an awesome time in New York this weekend and in L.A. this summer. I will make a new post about my NYC experience when I return to L.A.!
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