Faculty Sponsor: Steven Katz

Cancer is a disease that can afflict even the healthiest of people. There is rarely a clear reason for acquiring it, and for many types of cancer, the mechanism by which it acts is even more mysterious. Kebbeh worked at Roger Williams Hospital to develop a timeline of tumor growth in response to a known method that cancer cells have of evading the immune system, upregulation of the PD-1/ PD-L1 pathway needed for immune suppression. Along with laboratory work, she conducted interviews with elite athletes, trainers, and doctors to see how the “athlete mentality” can help during treatment and recovery from cancer.