Cracking the Cancer Code - The Business of Science

The Business of Science

12/16/24 • 25 min

This episode focuses on the often-overlooked administrative side of scientific research, particularly in cancer research. We talk to Sandy Ormbrek and Dr Anna Green about the complex world of grant administration and funding.
Special thanks to Maleah O'Connor for all the work she does to support the grants we work on!
Also a special thanks to Allison Peters, Denise Albano, Maria Owens and Sana Hirata for all they do!

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In this episode we discuss how modern cancer research increasingly requires collaboration between traditional lab scientists and computational experts from the earliest stages of study design. The episode challenges the common misconception that data scientists only analyze data after collection, highlighting how early involvement of computational experts can strengthen experimental design and ultimately lead to more robust cancer research.

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Every dot is a person

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This episode takes a powerful and human-centered look at the stories behind cancer data. While researchers often work with spreadsheets full of numbers and categories, each data point represents a real person with a complex, emotional journey.

The episode features intimate conversations with three cancer survivors:

Johanna Kenney, who was diagnosed with breast cancer at an unusually young age
Christina Sisti, whose cancer journey intertwined with her husband's own battle against head and neck cancer
Grace Waller, who fought osteosarcoma as a teenager and participated in a clinical trial that later became standard treatment

Through their stories, listeners learn how cancer statistics and medical records often fail to capture the full depth of the patient experience - from the shock of diagnosis, through the challenges of treatment, to the ongoing reality of life after being declared cancer-free. The episode also explores the vital role of patient advocates in helping bridge the gap between researchers and the people they're ultimately trying to help.

It's a moving reminder that behind every clinical trial, every survival rate, and every data point is a human being with hopes, fears, and a story that deserves to be heard.