By Parker Lynch
The Colon Cancer Foundation (CCF) has an incredible internship program that encourages interns to review journal articles on healthcare and colorectal cancer (CRC), raises their awareness on CRC, provides a platform for interns to connect with other researchers/students interested in the same field, attend research conferences, among other things! Additionally, interns frequently write articles and create infographics on the latest developments in the CRC space.
This blog post is dedicated to introducing some of the faces behind all of these articles, and taking a look at what they are doing now in their academic and professional careers.
Emily Edwards (they/them)
Emily Edwards
After working with CCF, Emily is currently serving as an Infection Prevention Specialist for the CDC Foundation in conjunction with the North Carolina Division of Public Health. Their primary focus is to prevent the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases across 27 counties located in Western North Carolina. They are also responsible for connecting individuals with the necessary healthcare services while simultaneously reaching out to their partners to curb the further spread of the disease. According to Emily, “The skills I acquired during my time as an intern with the Colon Cancer Foundation equipped me with the expertise to communicate intricate scientific data to diverse audiences, which I use in my current role”.
Shachi Patel
Shachi Patel (she/her)
Shachi is currently a second-year physician assistant student. Since September 2023, she has completed her pediatric and surgery rotations and is currently on her OBGYN rotation in Philadelphia. Shachi has loved all of them so far, and is excited for the rest of her rotations and to see what specialty she ends up in as a PA.
Sahar Alam (she/her)
Sahar Alam
Sahar joined the Colon Cancer Foundation (CCF) as a Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Prevention intern while she completed her Master of Public Health with a concentration in Epidemiology from New York University. She was drawn to CCF’s mission because one of her close family members was diagnosed and treated for colorectal cancer in 2019. During her internship, Sahar interviewed researchers about their recent work and notable research findings, wrote blog
posts about CRC research, developed infographics, and coordinated with other interns to raise
awareness about CRC. Sahar says that she is very grateful to have worked with Dr. Surabhi Dangi-Garimella, who mentored and guided her throughout her internship. Currently, Sahar works as a Manager of Scientific and Health Policy Initiatives at ISPOR—The Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research.
Parker Lynch is a Colorectal Cancer Prevention Intern with the Colon Cancer Foundation.
Picture credit: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay.