I am Priyanka Srinivasan, a student at the University of Pittsburgh majoring in Biological Sciences with a minor in Chemistry and certificate in Conceptual Foundations of Medicine. I am hoping to attend medical school in the near future. A fun fact about me is that I have lived in Australia, Saudi Arabia, and four different states in the United States (Tennessee, Iowa, Illinois, and Pennsylvania).
I am conducting biomedical research in Dr. Ajay Niranjan's lab, studying Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery, a novel and non-invasive method to treat brain metastases. In my independent project, I am looking at the impact of Gamma Knife radiotherapy on pineal gland tumors, specifically pineocytomas and papillary tumors. The pineal gland is a region in the middle of the brain that is associated with many physiological functions like regulation of the circadian rhythm and energy balance. Tumors or lesions in this gland can have detrimental impacts on an individual, and it has been found that there is a 30% chance that individuals with tumors in this region will not survive beyond five years (Pineal region tumors diagnosis and treatment). With the severity of this condition, I am looking at the effectiveness of Gamma Knife in treating these tumors effectively. I am measuring the local tumor control and rate of distant progression of the tumor from the pineal gland as well as recording the histories of the patients and treatment parameters associated with their surgeries. This way, I will be able to conduct statistical analyses and construct Kaplan-Meier plots and Cox regression analyses to determine the most effective manner in which to treat these patients. With the severity of these lesions and tumors and the limited research conducted on these cases, I believe that through this study, we can determine the best method to manage these harmful conditions.
My current professional goals include pursuing medical school to become a pediatrician for underserved clinics in the future. I am also considering specializing in pediatric cardiology or pediatric oncology. CURF will help me pursue those goals as it gives me the opportunity to conduct research in specialties that I am fascinated by, while also preparing myself with the scientific knowledge and critical thinking skills necessary for medical school and as a practicing physician. Additionally, I am developing communication skills important for a career as a physician by sharing my research with my peers and community through posts like these. The skills that CURF is helping me develop from the beginning will undoubtedly help me as I work towards becoming the physician that I aspire to be in the future.
Figure 1: This is a radiographic image of a patient that I looked at in this project. This is a 77-year-old male who had a pineal gland tumor and underwent Gamma Knife SRS. During the planning procedure for the treatment, a radiation dose of 14 Gy was prescribed to the margin of the tumor as outlined by the yellow line in the images.
No comments:
Post a Comment