“There are so many discoveries to be made in treating autoimmune diseases, and I hope to lead the way in making life better for all affected children.”
An autoimmune disease: a condition where the body’s immune system attacks itself and its own healthy tissues. When I first heard this term as a freshman in high school, I was not sure whether to be fascinated or horrified. Suddenly, this condition became a reality for my family and me when my two sisters and I were diagnosed with celiac disease. Making such a drastic lifestyle change was certainly an adjustment for us, to say the least. As a fifteen year-old enrolled in Honors Biology, my newest reality aligned with aspects of the curriculum, and this course quickly became my favorite subject. I was compelled to learn how the body worked, or in my case, the ways that it did not.
The moment that clarified my future career plans occurred a couple of weeks after my diagnosis when I had an endoscopic procedure to confirm my condition. Sitting in the hospital bed, I remember how caring and supportive the doctors and nurses were, but more so, I remember being captivated by their work. Right before I went under anesthesia, a medical student asked to take a sample of the tissue of my small intestine for data in a clinical trial on celiac disease. After talking with her and learning more about her research and the role my biopsy sample would play in helping to find a cure for the disease, I was intrigued and inspired. Two years later, the summer before my senior year, I had the amazing opportunity to return to the same Pediatric Endoscopy unit as an observer rather than as a patient.
I took the initiative to reach out to the medical student I had connected with in the hospital, as well as my doctors, inquiring about any opportunities to get my feet wet in the field. During my two week observership at Massachusetts General Hospital with the Pediatric Gastroenterology unit, I became educated, engaged, and motivated to further pursue the field of medicine. I was able to meet patients from all over the world and hear their stories, while also shadowing some of the nation’s top doctors, fellows, and residents who were so welcoming and eager to teach me. I went on rounds for inpatient care, sat in on clinical cases, and observed medical procedures.
Being on the other side of the procedure, watching other kids go through the same thing that happened to me just two years earlier, was truly a full circle moment. Not only did this experience change me as a person, but it made it clear to me that medicine, specifically, Pediatric Gastroenterology, is the specialty I want to pursue. There are so many discoveries to be made in treating autoimmune diseases, and I hope to lead the way in making life better for all affected children. As an undergraduate student, I plan to major in Biology on a pre-med track, preparing me to accomplish my dreams of giving back to the field of medicine that has done so much for me.
- Madelyn