Why did we start a podcast on cancer careers – Oliver Bogler

Why did we start a podcast on cancer careers, when we are already inundated with things vying for our attention, and when NCI already shares lots of information? The reason is simple – with Inside Cancer Careers we can participate in the conversation around what people do to end cancer as we know it for all. And we aren’t just sharing information – we are telling the stories of people working on cancer – your stories.

It is an exceptionally exciting time in cancer research, with the pace of discovery accelerating as new technologies and tools come online and knowledge builds on knowledge. At the same time, huge obstacles remain to bringing advances to all who could benefit. And research careers are in flux. People interested in cancer now have many different options to make a difference – all of which we intend to explore – the traditional academic path is not the only way.

So as we explore cancer careers by talking to people early in their careers and those who are more established we do not shy away from identifying the challenges scientists face. No career driven by a passion is likely to be easy, but following your passion must not mean that you don’t also have a place in the world that is secure.

This week’s episode will focus on how the revolution in computational science is changing what we can learn from clinical trials and biological samples to improve immunotherapy in a conversation with Dr. Peng Jiang. Then we turn to the practical matter of personal finances and taxes during graduate school and postdoc in a conversation with Dr. Emily Roberts, PhD of Personal Finances for PhDs.

Since our launch in March, we have already had some great guests who have shared their journeys, insights, and advice. We started out talking about mentorship & finding your professional motto with Dr. Mary Grace Katusiime, PhD & Dr. Camille Lange.

We’ve explored some career stages and their transitions, including doing your PhD research at NCI with Megan Majocha (also available as a video on our website), and how the F99/K00 predoc to postdoc transition grant can help you with Dr. Caitlin Allen and Dr. Samantha Y. Yee.

We heard about the process of starting your own lab from Dr. Simon Schwörer, PhD, and how a research lab is like the Mad Hatters tea party and what that means when you are building collaborations with clinical colleagues from Dr. Adrienne Boire.

We learned about the ACTION program which tackles the cancer problem in Appalachia and engages students in work on cancer with Dr. Nathan L. Vanderford, PhD, MBA, and Susanna Goggans & Michael Buoncristiani who were inspired by the program to pursue medicine.

We have begun to explore NCI’s Intramural Research Program with Dr. Jiyeon Choi who studies the genetics of cancer susceptibility in our Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics and Dr. Peng Jiang from the Center for Cancer Research this week.

We had an episode on grants where we heard from two NCI program officers, Dr. Leah Hubbard, Ph.D. and Dr. Eric M. Johnson Chavarria, PhD, about what their role is in the grants process and spoke with Dr. Dianna Ng on how to prepare a great K08 application. We also learned about the NIH Loan Repayment Program from Matthew Lockhart, Dr. Dionna Williams & Dr. Arnethea L. Sutton, PhD.

We’ve heard from leaders about their perspectives: Dr. Karen Knudsen MBA PhD, CEO of ACS explained how she blends strategy with curiosity to lead progress. Dr. Jim Woodgett shared his many years of studying kinases and leading research and Dr. Avery August told us about how he is working for faculty success with a scientific approach.

Every one of our guest shared their own journey into science and into their present roles – and often there is much to learn from them. Few paths are linear and people make discoveries about themselves as they make discoveries about cancer.

If any of those topics interest you, please check out Inside Cancer Careers on your favorite podcast platform. We’ve just started and so we are also excited to hear your ideas – contact info and details about each episode on our webpage: https://www.cancer.gov/grants-training/training/inside-cancer-careers.

And if you like recommendations for fun things, or have something you’d like to recommend, check out Your Turn at the end of each episode.

Source: Oliver Bogler/Linkedin