Team Spotlight - VCU Medical School

As I mentioned yesterday, I have a special fondness for the students at VCU Medical School.  I was their age when I was diagnosed with Hodgkins.  Many of them will make up the future of oncology in this country and hopefully - for a few of them - they will do that at Massey.

The first time I was asked to speak to these students, it was to a lecture hall full of first years as part of their genetics curriculum.  I was nervous - my understanding of cancer and my diagnoses is definitely a layman's understanding rather than a technical one.  I was afraid that I would use the wrong term, or seem ignorant to them, or use some statistic or figure that I thought was right but that they had just learned was wrong.

But they were so kind to me.  I have never been asked more questions - about my relationships with my doctors, about what patients need, about what living with my cancer risk is like.  I LOVED that morning with them.  And have grown to love all of my time with them.
  
So I was particularly excited last year when this rock star started the VCU Medical School Massey Challenge team:

(I'm sorry, Jamie - Its the only Challenge pic I have of the team!)

And I was even more excited to learn that they were back again this year, and that Jamie had recruited her classmate Emily to help her make this the largest VCU Medical School team yet!

As as side note, to off-set the not-so-great story from last Friday that I shared with you yesterday, I want to share one of the sweetest moments I have had in a long time today.  Although we had emailed back and forth for quite some time, Friday was the first time I actually met Emily.  She was even more sweet, enthusiastic, and graceful than I had expected.

As we walked together from the lecture hall to the lobby outside of the M1 and M2's next lecture, we chatted some about the Challenge and life generally.  All that time, I never put together the fact that Emily had been in one of the genetics classes I had spoken to.  Until she brought it up.  It was heartwarming to hear that some of the things I said had spoken to her. 

Sometimes I wonder if all the words we say to all these people in RVA really get through.  Thank you, Emily, for reminding me that they do.

Want to help Jamie, Emily, and the rest of VCU Medical School reach their goal?  Click here.