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| Eden Teng is Cambodian American, daughter of a refugee mother who survived genocide in her home country. As a kid, Teng admired her mother for her energy and independence. But she felt confused by the way her emotions could spiral out of control for seemingly no reason, and by her many health problems.
Studying psychology in college, she learned that her mother’s past was closely connected with her mental and physical challenges. It made a lot of sense. But in grad school she noticed a gap: instruction about forces that shaped her own life – like race and immigration– was lacking. "I didn't feel represented, and I felt that so much of my family's history just didn't feel like it was considered," Teng remembers.
Now Teng has joined a movement of counselors trying to make therapy more relevant and accessible to people of color. That means working with clients to examine the external pressures, stressors, and layers of oppression they’ve been through. For example, she says many children of refugees struggle with feelings of guilt around their parents’ sacrifices, and feel pressure to achieve that can be harmful to their wellbeing. Teng and others like her want to help clients see their culture as a form of intergenerational strength, rather than suffering.
Also: CDC director declares racism a ‘serious public health threat’
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"It's hard for me to convey the excitement that's sweeping through the whole field of cell biology,” oncologist and cell biologist Siddhartha Mukherjee told NPR’s Fresh Air, ... “the kind of headiness, giddiness, the madness, the psychic power that grips you once you get into the field.”
In his new book, The Song of the Cell, Mukherjee writes about the emerging field of cell therapy and about how cellular science could one day lead to breakthroughs in the treatment of cancer, HIV, diabetes and sickle cell anemia. Mukherjee won a Pulitzer Prize for his 2010 book on cancer: The Emperor of all Maladies.
Mukherjee has been working with genetically altered T-cells for over a decade. (T-cells are a type of white blood cell that play an essential role in the immune system). For example, to treat a 7 year-old girl with leukemia, Mukherjee and his colleagues started by extracting T-cells from the child’s body. Then they used gene therapy to alter the cells, so they would recognize and attack leukemia cells specifically. Finally, they infused the altered cells back into the patient’s body. He hopes that with more research, this technique can be used to take on solid tumors like those found in lung or prostate cancer.
Mukherjee also spoke with Terry Gross about how his own depression helps him empathize with seriously ill patients, and how the scientific method persevered through political battles over COVID-19.
Plus: Accumulated mutations create a cellular mosaic in our bodies
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We hope you enjoyed these stories. Find more of NPR's health journalism on Shots and follow us on Twitter at @NPRHealth.
All the best,
Andrea Muraskin and your Shots editors |
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