Week 1 Blog

Hello again! I’ve spent this first week of the senior project doing research while I work out internship details.

I began by making lists. I listed books, TV shows, and movies I had encountered that referenced cancer. My goal is to find any discernible patterns. I then added onto the list I had already started of books, websites, and documentaries to reference for my project. 

Initially, my research journey took me through numerous websites, where I scoured the internet for pertinent information. However, recognizing the amount of time at my disposal dedicated solely to research, I decided to go beyond internet searches. I went to my local library and looked at books to read. I checked out a few books in addition to a DVD of the documentary series Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies that I had been wanting to watch in full for a while. This documentary relates to both my topic and internship. My family friend who connected me to my internship mentor informed me that my mentor was affiliated with Steven Rosenberg’s group. She linked a biographical video of Rosenberg that mentioned that he was famous for his research on immunotherapy, something he talked about in Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies. I then wanted to seek out the segments from the documentary featuring Rosenberg to get context for my upcoming internship. Additionally, it dawned on me that the documentary series as a whole could serve as a valuable resource for tackling misconceptions surrounding cancer.

I was unable to find a place to watch the documentary series for free online, so I ended up checking out the DVD at the library. I watched the first hour of the first DVD (of three). My initial impression of the documentary was positive. It wasn’t the most entertaining thing I had ever watched. It felt a bit long and dense. It would amount to eight hours of information about cancer. However, it gave very detailed information on the history of cancer. Some of these details didn’t seem relevant to my project, but others did. I believe that while my project isn’t focused on history, the history of cancer research is important to understanding and addressing misconceptions relating to cancer. I look forward to continuing my exploration of this documentary and eagerly await the discoveries that lie ahead in my research journey!