Watching her grandfather suffer from lung cancer inspired her to not only launch a career in the medical field but also raise awareness for a form of lung cancer called Mesothelioma.
Brianne Hoglin, a junior pre-med molecular biology major from Monument, Colorado is spreading awareness through a scholarship competition.
“No one in my family has ever had Mesothelioma but my grandfather passed away from lung cancer, so I saw the effects cancer has on both the person that suffers and the family,” Hoglin said.
During her freshman year, Hoglin received news that her grandfather lost his second battle to lung cancer.
“The summer before I left for school I watched him lose his quality of life,” she said. “Watching him go through the pain of lung cancer — both the physical and emotional toll it took on him was really hard to watch.
“I know that for me and my family it was taking such a toll on us because we felt so helpless to do anything.”
It was through that experience that she realized she wanted to do something about that helpless feeling.
“I came to school thinking I wanted to do physical therapy, but through life experience, like watching my grandfather, and taking a couple kinesiology classes, I realized that my heart really wasn’t in it,” she said.
“Knowing that feeling of complete helplessness makes me want to be on the other end of the table.”
Soon after, Hoglin began medical volunteer work and learned that she could alleviate some of that helplessness for others. Now she is pursuing a career in the medical field and has recently been recognized as a national finalist in the Jan Egerton and Don Smitley Mesothelioma Scholarship presented by MesotheliomaHelp.org.
The scholarship’s purpose is for students to write essays detailing a personal experience with Mesothelioma or other cancers or research to raise awareness.
“This [raising awareness] is so important, because most of the battle of Mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos,” Hoglin said.
The only known cause of this specific lung cancer is exposure to asbestos, which are minerals that occur naturally in the environment as bundles of fibers and are used in many building and construction industries.
Hoglin said that many are not aware of the risks asbestos exposure has. By researching the risks and tying it in to her own personal experience, Hoglin composed an essay to help spread awareness. Her essay was selected out of over 50 essays for a finalist position.
Her essay, which can be voted for at MesotheliomaHelp.org, is one example of Hoglin living out what she calls her passion.
“Having my heart break for those things is what showed me that I have a passion and a heart to work towards a career in this field.”
For more information or to read the finalists’ essays click here.
Photo courtesy of Hoglin