“As someone who has a foot in both worlds, as a patient and a doctor, I hoped to give them essential insight and amplify their interest in healthcare. Medicine is a human endeavor; all this tech and tools are in service of helping human beings.”
The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Students were surprised that Dr. Lin was able to stay upbeat and positive even though he has such a grim diagnosis. Many expressed that the class inspired them to consider oncology or cancer research as a career. The ones planning to pursue a job in the medical field expressed that Dr. Lin’s story impacted how they perceived the patient’s experience.
Advocating for Lung Cancer Research
Dr. Lin and his students were most surprised about how underfunded lung cancer research is, especially compared to other cancers. He is the first to tell you that without research, he would not be here today. Not only that, but research has also led to treatments like targeted therapy that have allowed him to live without disease progression for two years. Additionally, he has participated in a clinical trial that changed his standard of care. The study suggested that having chemotherapy in combination with his targeted therapy was more effective, so that is the protocol he followed, with very favorable results. “I am so lucky that the treatment has been working for me and is why I am able to teach my classes and talk to you now,” he said. “I’m hopeful that when my tumor gets resistant to my current targeted therapy that research will provide a way forward. But we in the lung cancer community need to advocate for more funding for the disease,” he explained.
“We have great evidence now that lung cancer in smokers can be detected early, so we need policies that make sure these types of preventative medicine are covered. In addition, reasonable evidence from a study done in Taiwan shows that if screening Asian non-smokers can result in a 2% detection rate in this risk population. This is greater than even the 1% detection rate that screening currently has for smokers,” Dr. Lin continued.
Raising awareness and advocating for lung cancer patients, particularly in Asian communities and among those who have never smoked, is a cause close to his heart. “Many people don’t realize that anyone can get lung cancer, regardless of smoking history,” he said.
The Power of Stories
A former door-to-door doctor, Dr. Lin has made it his mission to stress that people are at the heart of medical practice. “We are as humans the stories we tell about ourselves and to others. That is human connection,” he said. Moving forward, this is his focus.
“When you get diagnosed with a serious illness, some people ask about a bucket list, but I’ve never been a bucket list person, I just try to think about what is important to me and do those things,” he explained.
“Though I have less certain time now, I have been fortunate I haven’t changed my life all that much which validates to me I am living the way I should. So that is my advice: be kind, be curious, help others and do more of what makes you happy.”
Learn more about lung cancer research and how you can make a difference.
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