NYMC Students Published in Academic Journals
It’s an impressive feat for anyone to get published in an academic journal, even more so to be published as a student—yet three impressive New York Medical College (NYMC) students recently achieved just that.
In October of 2018, Brian Tung, School of Medicine (SOM) Class of 2022, authored “Krüppel-like factor 9 and histone deacetylase inhibitors synergistically induce cell death in glioblastoma stem-like cells,” which was published in the peer-reviewed medical journal, BMC Cancer. Then in April, Jeffrey Omar Patrick, an M.P.H. student in the School of Health Sciences and Practice (SHSP), and Adam M. Karp, SOM Class of 2019, in collaboration with Mill Etienne M.D. ‘02, M.P.H., associate dean for student affairs and clinical assistant professor of neurology, and NYMC alumnus Nathan Carberry, M.D. ’17, co-authored, “Healing through Self-Expression: The Role of Art Therapy in Medicine,” which was published in the Journal of Health and Human Experience.
Mr. Tung’s study focused on finding more effective treatments for patients with glioblastoma multiforme, the most common and aggressive primary brain tumor that often evades even the most advanced treatments available. “Sadly, it has claimed the lives of many, including Joseph “Beau” Biden III, son of former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, and more recently, Senator John McCain. It kills about 15,000 people in the United States each year,” Mr. Tung explains. “We were interested in a protein called, Krüppel-like factor 9 (KLF9), and its ability to bind DNA to turn specific genes on and off. The idea is that changes in gene expression can make these cells more treatment-sensitive, bolstering the effects of chemotherapy,” he says. “Ultimately, we found in this study that KLF9 was able to enhance the cancer-killing capabilities of chemotherapy on brain cancer cells.”
In the paper, “Healing though Self-Expression: The Role of Art Therapy in Medicine,” Mr. Patrick says while research into art therapy is still in its infancy, the article illustrates the potential of this non-pharmacological adjunct to traditional therapy. “We included vignettes of multiple patients who have found new identities and emotional solace by turning to art during their recoveries and I encourage everyone to read our article to understand the benefits of art therapy.”
“We strove to provide an easily accessible review of what art therapy is, its benefits and limitations, through the lens of direct patient outcomes. Hopefully this work will encourage physicians across disciplines to utilize art therapy and to advocate for further research on this novel therapy," explains Mr. Karp. “It was very clear to us that art therapy has tremendous potential for a wide variety of patients. Still, many physicians do not regularly refer their patients,” says Mr. Karp.
Dr. Etienne, who has been using both music and art therapy for many years as adjuncts to treat his patients with traumatic brain injury, dementia and stroke, speaks to the importance of this paper saying, “It is refreshing to offer a treatment that does not have any negative side effects.” He adds, “It was my pleasure to work with hard working students from the School of Medicine and the School of Health Sciences and Practice and I encourage more collaborations between the schools here at NYMC.”