Weekly Report (11/22-12/4)

These past two weeks marked many important milestones- I went on my first mentor visit to the surgical oncology clinic, I began my research paper for my original work, and the research showcase became more final as I began passing out invitations for that. My first mentor visit was everything I had hoped it would be. I spent nearly two and a half hours in clinic, and seemed to lose track of time. Dr. Mansour showed me how to read MRI scans for tumors and lesions, and overall helped me gain a better understanding of various maladies I would be seeing throughout the year. I sat in on a total of six cases, and each one was vastly different. The first was believed to be a hemangioma, a benign liver lesion. The second a gastrinoma, a kind of cancer I had no idea existed. Essentially, the tumor secretes gastrin, a hormone that affects the entire digestive tract. I saw a few patients who had either just received or scheduled a whipple- also known as the pancreaticoduodenectomy. Although I knew this surgery was complex, I had no idea just how difficult it was to perform. Dr. Mansour kindly drew a diagram for me to refer to throughout the day, although it has inspired me to do further research on this surgery.