As an M.D./Ph.D. student at the Jacobs School of Medicine, my ultimate dream is to become a physician-scientist specializing in pediatric oncology. I am currently pursuing my third year of medical school studies. I recently completed the PhD part of my dual-degree program at the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center where I studied neuroblastoma, a deadly pediatric cancer affecting nerve cells of the body. More than half of high-risk neuroblastoma patients will ultimately die from progressive disease, highlighting the critical need for new therapy options. Under the direction of my mentor, Dr. Anna Bianchi-Smiraglia, I identified and characterized the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) as a new tumor promoting-protein in neuroblastoma. Excitingly, my work revealed clofazimine (CLF), an already FDA-approved drug for leprosy, as a potential new treatment for neuroblastoma in laboratory models. We plan to test the safety and effectiveness of clofazimine in high-risk neuroblastoma patients in clinical trials. Ultimately, I aspire to lead a laboratory as a principal investigator and study the molecular basis underlying pediatric tumors, including neuroblastoma. In addition, I plan to care for childhood cancer patients and their families in the hospital. My unique M.D./Ph.D. training background in both medicine and cancer biology will allow me to ask clinically relevant questions in the lab and bring my discoveries in the lab back to the patients in the clinic. My goal is to find novel therapies for pediatric cancers such as neuroblastoma in the lab, and ultimately run clinical trials. I want to be a physician-investigator at a leading academic hospital, where I can make the greatest impact on patients while being the most caring and compassionate provider that I can be.