By Susan Buckles – Mayo Clinic
Kianna Nguyen
During clinical rotations in medical school, Kianna Nguyen encountered many patients with liver failure and was struck by a grim reality: Their only hope was a transplant. The shortage of donor organs and therapeutic options was at once frustrating and inspirational, triggering her research interest in cellular therapies for liver failure.
“Research provides us with the understanding to develop tools to make big changes in clinical problems like those facing patients with liver failure,” says Nguyen. “I want to be on the forefront of developing medical technologies that provide alternatives. I derive a lot of passion for research through thinking about the future patients I will be treating in the clinic.”