NEPA Vital Signs - Summer Fall 2017 - 21

S U M M E R / F A L L 2 017

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A DAY IN THE LIFE
OF A NEURO-ONCOLOGIST
What comes to mind when you hear "Neuro-Oncologist"?
Because the specialty deals with cancers of the brain and
spinal cord, which can be life-threatening, we may ask how a
Neuro-Oncologist deals with such hardships and complexities.
Confident that there was more to the story than breaking bad
news, I sat down with Dr. Na Tosha Gatson - an attending
Neuro-Oncologist at Geisinger - to find out more.
Dr. Gatson completed her B.A. degree at
Indiana University, and then completed
nine years of a combined MD/PhD training
program at The Ohio State University
(OSU). After then finishing four years of a
Neurology Residency at OSU, an additional year at OSU working on viral therapies
in treating malignant brain tumors, and
then two years of clinical fellowship
training at The University of Texas MD
Anderson Cancer Center in Neuro-Oncology, she made her way to Geisinger.
Because her work is divided between
clinical, research, and educational responsibilities, it's hard to talk about a "typical
day" in Dr. Gatson's life. On her clinical
days, she spends time seeing patients
with brain tumors, as well as other cancer
patients that are experiencing neurological conditions. She often works with
other health professionals, including
pathologists, radiologists, and hematologists, and trains residents. During her
research time, she works to understand
what drives tumor progression and how

physicians might be able to predict and
prevent progression of these tumors. As
an educator, she gives presentations to
medical students, nursing staff, patients,
and other physicians. Outside of work,
she enjoys traveling to cities and spending time with her family. It goes without
saying that she is one busy woman!
Curious as to why she chose this specialty, I asked Dr. Gatson what attracted
her to Neuro-Oncology. Her response?
"While brain cancer threatens to rob
patients of their basic neurologic function
and quality of life, I have dedicated my
practice to aid in the recovery and maintenance of thought, sensation, speech,
and movement, as these make up the
essence of what it means to be human."
She also noted even as a teen, she was
interested in working to preserve the
human condition. Dr. Gatson truly seems
to embody patient-centered medicine
and commitment to limiting the impact
of disease, which are admirable and necessary characteristics in any physician.

Although some days are difficult, she finds
it rewarding to work with her patients, and
they have taught her how to be patient
and perseverant.
While her days are busy and she loves
what she does, we may still be left wondering how she deals with seeing such difficult
diseases every day. Dr. Gatson tells me: "I
am always honored to be a part of the life
and the living, even in the face of death,
that pushes through to smiles, gratefulness, and the unborrowed sunshine from
the days ahead." In my opinion, this is a
perfect outlook from a fantastic doctor.
We can all learn a little something from
the wisdom of a Neuro-Oncologist.
ERIN CONNOLLY is a first-year
medical student and Northeastern
Pennsylvania Health Care Foundation
Scholar at Geisinger Commonwealth
School of Medicine. She has a B.A. in
Biology from Wellesley College and previously
worked in Immuno-Oncology research at the
Dana Farber Cancer Institute. She hopes to pursue
Obstetrics and Gynecology.

If you or someone you know has an interesting medical specialty or hobby outside of medicine and
would like to tell us about a day in your life, please contact NEPAvitalsigns@gmail.com.

N E PA

VITAL SIGNS

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NEPA Vital Signs - Summer Fall 2017