Brain Cancer Personal Statement

I was a child when my aunt got sick, and my fascination about the field of medicine began. She had brain cancer. While I watched the disease progress I was flooded, not only with sadness and grief, but with questions. With two psychologists for parents I had a lot of support and understanding of my feelings, but I was left curious about the medical aspect of the disease and why there was no cure. The notion that the brain could change someone’s entire personality and physical function was amazing to me. Spending a lot of time in hospitals, I observed so much about the impact of a cancer diagnosis on patients and their families, and about what happens to people through the disease process. I noticed the enormous influence that the medical professional’s

It was becoming increasing clear to me that the hospital environment was a community that I knew one day I wanted to be a part of. For three summers, I shadowed one emergency room physician who has been an amazing role model and mentor. This exposure taught me not only a plethora of terms, but to think critically and quickly and to prioritize and reason in ways that had immediate benefit. I also learned a great deal about bedside manner, and how important it is to be culturally and emotionally sensitive to patients. Like my family, this physician noticed so many important things about people- who they are and what matters to them. She knew just when to touch someone on the shoulder, or to step back. She accounted for age and class and race and subtleties that don’t even have words. She viewed each patient as a whole person. One night a woman was brought into the ER after a car crash and needed a neurological exam immediately. She was wearing a hijab. This physician kindly addressed the woman and asked her if she wanted the door closed while she took off her hijab. They both knew the cultural significance, helping this patient to feel respected and less