“This was my first real exposure to medicine as a career, and what I came away with from this experience is the intrinsic meaningfulness of the medical profession, i.e. the ability to help others, that in my opinion most other career paths lack,” he explained.

Mr. Ulgen is president of the School of Medicine’s Board of Student Organizations (BSO), which serves as a liaison to the Student Senate and administration on behalf of student organizations. The entity also works to create opportunities for intra-organization cooperation, including such events as the Student Orgs Fair during New Student Orientation, the student group sponsoring of Orientation Week social events and the Ethnic Fair, he said.

The BSO this year created a webstite – http://www.med.wayne.edu/bso/ -- for student organization leadership, created a database of contact information of all organizations and worked to streamline intra-organizational events.

In addition, Mr. Ulgen is treasurer of the World Health Student Organization, and serves on the Social Work Committee for the Student Run Free Clinic, which organizers hope to have open and running by fall 2009.

While unsure of his career pursuits after graduation, he is interested in cardiology and surgery. “What draws me to cardiology is the need for qualified cardiologists to deal with the high morbidity rates of heart disease that plagues our country. I also think that the heart is just a fascinating organ.”

After graduation, he plans to devote time each year caring for underserved patient populations at home and abroad. He hopes to work with Doctors Without Borders.

Mr. Ulgen selected Wayne State University for his medical training for a variety of reasons. “The School of Medicine is a fabulous research institution as evidenced by its ranking in the top 25 of medical schools in terms of National Institutes of Health funding,” he said. “Another reason is the top-notch clinical training at affiliated hospitals, which provide diverse learning environments and a chance to serve the underserved populations of Detroit.”

Ms. Whittington, a student in the Wayne State University School of Medicine’s M.D./Ph.D. program, played a major role in the development of what may one day become a vaccine for a certain type of breast cancer.

Working in the lab of Wei-Zen Wei, Ph.D., professor of Immunology and Microbiology at the School of Medicine, Ms. Whittington found herself in at the center of research expected to one day touch every woman in the United States, if not the world.

Ms. Whittington received lead author honors on the study announcing the potential vaccine, published in the Sept. 15 issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

The vaccine, Ms. Whittington and her co-researchers said, completely eliminated HER2-positive tumors in mice, without any toxicity. The study suggests the vaccine could treat women with HER2-positive, treatment-resistant cancer or help prevent cancer recurrence. The researchers also said it could potentially be used in cancer-free women to prevent initial development of these tumors.

“That’s pretty exciting,” Ms. Whittington said. “To think that I was given the opportunity to play a part in a potential vaccine that could mean so much to so many women … it’s hard to imagine.”

As the lead author, she helped generate the hypothesis of how the vaccine would work in an animal model system. She performed most of the experiments and data interpretation.

“My initial interest was in the use of immunotherapy to curb graft rejection in transplant patients,” Ms. Whittington explained. “Dr. Wei's research parallels this idea by using DNA vaccination to break tolerance to HER2.”

The discovery, and the attention it garnered, brought School of Medicine researchers to the fore as their story swept around the world.

“Researchers are generally behind the scenes. A doctor helps a patient and receives thanks, and that’s expected, but people don’t really know the researchers. But when this came out I received thanks from a number of people, even though the vaccine isn’t yet available. One woman thanked me because her mother has breast cancer. She wanted to thank me just for working on it,” Ms. Whittington said.

Originally from Upper Marlboro, Md., Ms. Whittington, 28, was a Meyerhoff Scholar at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where she received a bachelor’s degree in biology. She has already earned her doctorate degree and continues work on her medical degree. The paper she co-wrote that received so much recent media attention was vital to her thesis work.

Mr. Rizvi, 22, is originally from Farmington Hills. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan (Dearborn campus), earning a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and a bachelor’s degree with high distinction in psychology.

He worked and studied at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in the Texas Medical Center. The program is designed to expose students to basic and clinical research at one of the world’s best cancer centers. Fellows such as Mr. Rizvi were paired with a faculty mentor who provides research training. The program also integrates the clinical experience with clinicians in the hospital, and provides opportunities for didactic experiences and seminars. At the conclusion of the summer, fellows present their work and submit a report in article format.

Mr. Rizvi worked in the department of Thoracic/Head and Neck surgery, in a lab investigating the biochemical and molecular basis for tumor genesis in lung cancer using mouse, murine and human models. The study included looking at specific cell signaling pathways to elucidate events involved in tumor genesis, growth and potential resistance to drugs.

“By better understanding these pathways, novel targeted therapies can be developed that ultimately mean better outcomes for patients, or even potential preventative therapy,” he explained.

“It was an incredible learning experience,” he added. “Working closely alongside some of the best specialists in the world isn't an opportunity you get every day, so I am very grateful.”

The second-year School of Medicine student became interested in a medical career while in high school. His father, an engineer, explained mechanical functions, instilling an interest in how things function. “In high school, we did a sheep heart dissection,” he said. “After looking at the similarities between the heart and a mechanical pump, I realized that all of medicine is really figuring out how things work and what to do when things stop functioning normally. As an undergraduate student, that's why I chose the fields I studied in: to get a better idea, in two different realms, of how humans function.”

Mr. Rizvi has not yet settled on a particular field of medicine, however, after graduation he sees himself working at an academic institution.

“I'd like to be a part of the education of future medical students and residents, as well as contribute to the advancement of the field,” he said. “My father used to always teach me how things work, so it only seems natural to continue that in the field of medicine. I was also really strongly influenced by some of my undergraduate professors to consider working in the area of basic science and education. As medical students, we often forget the important contributions basic lab research has had on the field. A lot of students, myself included, might be intimidated or turned off from research since when presented, it can seem so far removed from the clinical setting. However, as a clinician, the more you desire to search for better, safer more efficacious treatment for your patients, the more you delve into the world of research, including basic bench work.”

Mr. Rizvi has been pleasantly surprised by the diverse makeup, both culturally and educationally, of the students at the School of Medicine. The mix of attitudes and values makes for an interesting academic setting.

“Diseases of the nervous system can have such devastating effects that I have seen firsthand,” he said. “I want to treat and research new therapies for these patients.”

After his first year in medical school, Mr. Rose was selected for the Wayne State University School of Medicine Summer Research Program, as well as the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers Research Scholarship. During this time he worked closely with Department of Neurology Chair, Robert Lisak, M.D., and Associate Chair for Neurology Research, Joyce Benjamins, Ph.D.

The project focused on the protein gp130, also known as the leptin receptor, and its possible involvement in the inflammatory process of Multiple Sclerosis. Mr. Rose hopes that these findings, after further research, could one day show this protein as a component of the damaging effects of MS, and a potential target for a new therapy.

In April, he presented his research project at the American Academy of Neurology’s National Conference in Chicago.

Mr. Rose, 23, is originally from Shelby Township. Now living in Detroit, he earned his undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering in 2006 at the University of Michigan.

He credits growing up the Detroit area, where he was exposed to many physicians who had SOM backgrounds, as a source of inspiration. “These are the people who first sparked my interest in the field, and I really look up to them,” he said. “They are great doctors, and I know part of that is because of Wayne State.”

After he completes his residency, Mr. Rose would like to see patients as a neurologist as well as be involved in clinical research. He continues to work with Dr. Lisak and Dr. Benjamins, and hopes to publish the findings of his research project.