Michelle A. Ozbun

A Vaccine for Cancer?
 

I grew up in a very small town in rural northwest Colorado. When I started school my Grandma Ozbun gave me a 'school memory' book, where I wrote down what I wanted to be when I grew up, adding important art, photos, names of friends, report cards. Early on my parents bought the "World Book Encyclopedia" like many parents of the era, hoping their kids would come to know more about the world than they did. I loved looking at all the exotic photos and reading about far away places and different cultures. I also really liked learning about light, colors, and chemicals and the science projects that were included. To my mother's dismay, I also enjoyed performing the science experiments with vinegar, baking soda, batteries, fire. I mixed up lots of stuff in her kitchen. Since my dad actually blew himself up on a few occasions, usually smoking while filling his propane truck or while washing paintbrushes in gasoline in my mom's washing machine (!), I think my mom was understandably worried about me too! Luckily, I turned out to have slightly more common sense than my dad.
 
The early 1970s saw the recognition of cancer as an increasing health problem. President Nixon responded during his January 1971 State of the Union address by declaring "war against cancer." All the grown-ups were talking about who had cancer and the horror of cancer. I didn't really know what cancer was, but I knew that it was important and that doctors mixed up chemicals to try to help people fight it. I had seen this in the encyclopedia and decided in 4th grade I would be a "Chemotherapist" when I grew up (or so I wrote in my school memory book). I sold cards door-to-door so I could earn money for a microscope (which I have in my office today). But this science stuff was not all I did; it was a pretty small part of my life. I also earned a skateboard, and I loved to play cars and Barbies, go fishing and camping and river rafting, and explore my rural town. I played girls softball and coed soccer in school. I rode my bicycle a lot too. That is until my dad bought me a motorcycle when I was in 5th grade! That was great fun. Man, could I ride some wheelies and race all over town.
 
I greatly disliked school during my elementary years. I faked being sick a lot so I could stay home and watch TV game shows. I think I avoided school because I attended a private, Christian school where we sat isolated in cubicles and read alone from booklets every day. I missed the interaction of the classroom. I remember learning about cells and chemicals, and that was good. Finally, in junior high school, I adapted better to the environment and began to excel in school. I enjoyed learning, and had the opportunity to work at a geochemical lab in high school. We tested soil samples for various elements (iron, gold, silver, uranium), and I got to learn experimental design and laboratory techniques. I did well in math, chemistry, biology, physics. Although neither of my parents went to college, I had always planned for college, with my parents' encouragement. I decided in my misogynistic surroundings that I would become a nurse. That's what it seemed girls did if they were good at science. No one steered me otherwise.
 
I applied to Mesa College in Grand Junction, Colorado, as a nursing major, but was late getting my application in, so I started out in "pre-nursing". I took lots of psychology and all my basic science classes (anatomy & physiology, chemistry, biology). But I fell in love with microbiology lab. I actually got a "C" in the lecture, but aced the lab, and that was when I decided to change my major. First, I decided on a "Med. Tech." degree so I could work as a microbiologist. I transferred to Colorado State University. But again I got sidetracked. I next became enamored with Organic Chemistry -- the lab and the lecture. When I began to look around for an internship as a Med. Tech., I found out that I was an anomaly - most Med. Tech.'s didn't do well in organic chemistry, and the Med. Tech. jobs were becoming more automated. I changed my major to Microbiology with a minor in Chemistry so I could prepare for graduate school. I was now contemplating graduate school in organic chemistry to concentrate on synthesizing drugs-antibiotics and chemotherapeutics.
 
The mid 1980's was a time of social and political upheaval for me and my friends. There was a scary "gay plaque" and "gay cancer" spreading like wildfire, and President Regan was blocking the US Surgeon General's attempts to educate people about this new and dreaded disease that was killing lots of young men. A number of people I knew were affected by what turned out to be AIDS, caused by infection with a new virus called HIV, and that peaked my interest in virology. As a Microbiology major, I planned to take virology, and decided to hold off on decisions about my future studies. Although I got a "D" on the first exam (because I didn't take the instructor's advice to learn all the virus families and characteristics), I stuck it out and obtained an A in the class. I had truly been captivated by the study of viruses, took a graduate level virology class and began working in a virology lab. My last semester of college I took 18 hours of science classes, worked as a workstudy in the organic chemistry prep lab and part-time in a virology lab, and played rugby. I made the Dean's List the only time in my life. I was having the time of my life!
 
I decided to get my Ph.D. in Virology at Baylor College of Medicine (not part of Baylor University) in Houston, Texas-primarily because 1) they had a focused and internationally recognized virology program, and 2) Texas was warmer than CO. Both were true for sure! Although I was interested in HIV and AIDS research, I decided to pursue my doctorate on a breast cancer research project, which was not related directly to viruses (at the time). I had a blast in graduate school. It was hard work, but also great fun with friends and colleagues, the thrill of victory, and much agony of defeat. Most of my experiments failed, but I was persistent. The pursuit of science, asking and answering questions, learning the scientific method, and thinking critically was and remains to me enthralling. I continued to play rugby and ride a motorcycle while in grad school. As a result, my adviser constantly pestered me: "I hope your lab notebook is up-to-date!"! I also ran the Houston Tenneco Marathon two times, once half, and a second time to 23 miles-both times with pneumonia! I've found running (in the absence of pneumonia) to be the perfect venue in which to reflect on and plan experiments or troubleshoot failed experiments, and I still use it as way to diffuse much of the innate frustration that comes with "doing" science. It's also good for reveling in the victory of that key experimental find!
 
I met my partner early in grad school. We moved to Hershey, Pennsylvania, for me to do my postdoctoral fellowship studying the new human tumor viruses, human papillomaviruses (HPVs), that had only recently been grown in the lab. My goal was eventually to move us back west, hopefully to my partner's home state of New Mexico and closer to Colorado. My hard work paid off! I've been at UNM now for 10 years (it's a good thing I started college when I was 6 years old! --- just kidding). In the last 10 years, I've had the great fortune to continue working in the exciting field of HPV research, amid great strides in understanding basic molecular infection events and the viruses' role in cancer. It was during this time that half of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Medicine went to Professor Harald zur Hausen for showing that some HPVs cause cervical cancer!! I love the melding of two research worlds: infectious disease/virology and cancer biology. Nearly 4 years ago, I also attained another childhood hope: to be a mom. My son, Ridge, is a terrific little scientist, curious about everything in the world, and I love being a kid again with him. He likes making volcanoes at home and joining on a run once in a while. And he can't wait until he's big enough to go motorcycling with his mom!
 
Albert Einstein said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." I think perseverance is equally necessary. There is a lot of failure in lab research experiments. In college I sold books door-to-door one summer. The mantra was that it took nine "nos" to get to one "yes." So we would try to get the nine "nos" out of the way quickly to get to those "yeses." I think the same is true in science. This equates to working hard and planning well. Many experiments are destined to fail, so get those failures out of the way!! Although it's hard work, I often say to folks who visit my lab, "don't tell anyone they pay me for this really terrific hobby!" I still love designing, overseeing, and performing exciting experiments in the lab. There are so many great aspects to my "job." The work really does make a difference in people's lives, I get to find answers to really cool molecular questions, and I get to travel to exotic and fun places all around the world, where I interact with scientists from all over, including young scientists like maybe some of you!