Have you ever wondered about what a scientist in pediatric research actually does? Like really does, on your average Tuesday… Is she creating bubbly green concoctions that steam and sizzle? Does she have a glass tube display that twists and turns like a roller coaster? Or does she spend all of her time at her desk, creating colorful charts and diagrams?
Dr. Alessandra Welker
I had the pleasure of talking with Dr. Alessandra Welker, recipient of one of OHOH’s pediatric research grants in 2019, to find out! Dr. Welker is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Langenau Lab in Boston, Massachusetts, and she studies rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS). Her research is all about genes commonly found in RMS that propel tumor growth. Her goal is to find drugs that inhibit these genes and stop RMS tumors from growing and metastasizing.
“So what’s your typical work day like?” I ask.
“I work with my hands a lot,” she tells me. “Most of my day consists of running experiments and working with all of the animals and tumor models we have in the lab.” The Langenau Lab tests and monitors tumors in mice, zebra fish, and human tissue cultures. “We are very lucky to get primary patient samples from our patients here at Mass General and collaborating labs,” she adds.
By looking for common genetic markers in the various RMS tumors she is monitoring, Dr. Welker is able to identify markers that likely enhance tumor growth. From there, she’s able to run tests and experiments on drugs in an attempt to “shut off” those genetic markers and prevent the RMS tumor growth.
“We also spend a good amount of time going to seminars, sitting at our desks analyzing data, and writing grants and papers,” Dr. Welker tells me. “The writing part is exciting for us because it means that we are coming to conclusions and putting to use good funding that we’re getting. It’s exciting to get to the finish line and actually publish the papers on the research that we’re doing.”
“What does it mean to you,” I ask, “that you’re working in pediatric cancer research?” I’m curious because I suspect that working in a lab with fish and mice and petri dishes might feel very distant from the children who are benefitting from her research, but her answer warmed my heart.
“Working in a pediatric cancer lab has been really rewarding because the research is very underfunded compared to a lot of the adult counterpart cancers” she tells me. “We are so lucky to have foundations like you guys helping us because otherwise, it’s really hard to do the work that we’re doing.”
I’m listening intently, but inside, I’m screaming, yaaaaaaaasss!
“Also, having more of a personal connection helps us a lot too because we work in a research environment, and our day-to-day work is not super well connected to the patients we’re helping. It’s really important for us to take time to talk to patients and patients’ parents, especially parents who have lost a child to the type of cancer we are studying.
“I have pictures and stories at my desk that really help put the research and the day-to-day grind into perspective when I’m thinking about the actual kids that we are affecting with the research we are doing.”
Of course, my heart melted. If you’ve been around a while, you may remember my friend, Corbyn. She was fighting RMS at the same time I was fighting neuroblastoma. Devastatingly, she did not survive. I told Dr. Welker about Corbyn and thanked her for the work she does. Now she has one more name, one more face, to remind her of the importance of her research.
“So what’s the ultimate goal? What’s the biggest and best thing you could achieve in your career,” I ask.
“For a lot of us that work in the pediatric cancer space, getting a drug to clinical trial is probably the most exciting thing we can hope for for in our career. We just published a paper in 2019 where we were able to put a novel combination of drugs that were already FDA approved into clinical trials here at Mass General, so we’ve already made really good strides in achieving this goal. Hopefully we are able to continue and come up with some more specific drugs and different targets from there.
“Actually being able to impact patient outcomes and the lives of patients is the most rewarding thing we can do, to be honest.”
We are so thankful here at OHOH for Dr. Welker, The Langenau Lab, and the fact that we are able to provide funding for their important research. If you’d like to help us fund more research like this, please consider making a donation. Join us today in saving lives!
Until there’s a cure,
Kayla