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Dear Mr.
Anderson
 |
Lauren
Leavitt will be a senior at Vanderbilt
University this fall. |
Last year, I lost a twenty-year-old friend to liver cancer,
and even through many
fundraisers were held in his name for research, I personally
felt the need to do
something more. I wanted to be involved and to know I had
helped in a more direct
way, and the internship seemed to be a perfect opportunity.
I had the chance to
take part in advanced research and treatments with innovative
drugs.
This eye-opening opportunity of working with the Stehlin
Foundation was also of an
extremely personal nature because it was your researchers
and doctors who helped to save my grandfather’s life
many years ago. Without the personalized nature of the
Stehlin Foundation in dealing with their patients and treatments,
my grandfather
wouldn’t have lived. I thank the foundation for that.
During this past summer, I was able to do so much more than
I would have ever
dreamed. I was given my own experiment to take care of,
which included weighing the
animals, recording the growth of their tumors, and treating
them with different
variations of drugs. Working side by side with true scientists
gave me a much better
feel for a life in the laboratory sciences and medicine.
Going on rounds with the doctors showed me the other side
of my research, the products of my experiments and research
that we find in the lab. Surgery showed me the more detailed
and “handson” aspects of medicine that one will
never find described accurately in a textbook. The field
trips we took allowed us to have a glimpse into other exposures
of the sciences.
I could not have experienced everything I was shown in any
other job. This truly
was a unique opportunity; unique, especially for me, as
I consider my future in
medicine, which I can say has been supported by all the
experiences I had this
summer. It by far has exceeded anything that I had ever
imagined. I thank you again
for selecting me for this internship. The Stehlin Foundation
has affected in many
ways my past, my summer and my future, and I will be forever
thankful.
Lauren M. Leavitt
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