Rick Woychik, Ph.D., directs NIEHS and the National Toxicology Program. (Image courtesy of NIEHS)Last November, I participated successful a Mayo Clinic league successful Rochester, Minnesota, that focused connected however cognition of the exposome — the totality of our biology exposures passim beingness and their related biologic changes — tin beforehand precision medicine. The extremity of precision medicine is to beforehand individualized diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease.
Attendees noted that without incorporating investigation of our cumulative exposures, the biomedical probe assemblage volition not afloat execute that goal. To amended recognize quality illness and to forestall mediocre wellness outcomes, it is captious to larn however aggregate biology factors tin interact with our familial and biologic makeup, according to participants.
I was joined by NIEHS Deputy Director Trevor Archer, Ph.D., and respective institute grantees. We and the galore planetary experts successful attendance explored topics specified arsenic precision nutrition, however to integrate exposomics into colonisation wellness studies, ample precision medicine projects similar the National Institutes of Health All of Us Research Program, and overmuch more.
Cathy Wurzer, who hosts Morning Edition and Minnesota Now connected Minnesota Public Radio News, moderated the two-day event. She has won 4 Emmy Awards, and she was precocious inducted into the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame. I was impressed by her accomplishment astatine spurring thoughtful and accessible conversations connected a assortment of analyzable technological subjects.
After the conference, I caught up with Wurzer to inquire astir her reflections connected the meeting, opportunities to stock the exposome conception with the wide public, and ways that researchers themselves tin amended pass their enactment and its value to wider audiences. In addition, I asked her to sermon her vocation trajectory and way to a vocation successful broadcast journalism.
The adjacent frontier
Rick Woychik: What were your takeaways from the Mayo Clinic league we attended, “Explore the Exposome: The Next Frontier of Individualizing Medicine”?
Learn much astir the conversations that Wurzer moderated astatine the Mayo Clinic league by speechmaking this caller Environmental Factor article. (Photo courtesy of Cathy Wurzer)Cathy Wurzer: One of my biggest takeaways is that genetics represents lone a tiny percent of the factors that lend to disease. I knew that our situation affects our health, but I was amazed to larn conscionable however heavy the effects tin be, and I didn't recognize however cumulative exposures implicit a beingness tin importantly power our biologic makeup.
I person had the privilege of hosting the Mayo Clinic’s Individualizing Medicine Conference for the past respective years, and I americium blown distant by the breathtaking velocity astatine which the subject has evolved successful conscionable that time. The discussions astatine the latest gathering were fascinating and besides depressing erstwhile you deliberation of everything that we are exposed to each day, but I was gladsome that the organizers focused connected this facet of precision medicine, the exposome.
Years ago, erstwhile media outlets reported connected the Human Genome Project, we were told that decoding our DNA would revolutionize knowing of the underlying causes of disease. But successful caller years, I deliberation it has go wide that researchers besides indispensable see however aggregate biology exposures impact america and interact with our genes.
Storytelling is essential
RW: You did an outstanding occupation moderating discussions astatine the league and asking clarifying questions that spurred wide and concise speech connected the exposome. In my view, connection is cardinal to helping some the nationalist and scientists admit the exposome and its value to precision medicine. Given your inheritance successful broadcast journalism, what are your thoughts connected however to stock these ideas with wider audiences?
CW: When I mean league discussions, my extremity is to recognize the cardinal subject truthful that I tin inquire bully questions and marque definite the assemblage grasps the research. Preparing for the caller gathering was similar drinking from a occurrence hose due to the fact that determination was truthful overmuch to work and retain. It was humbling to beryllium connected signifier with truthful galore pioneering researchers successful the field, and it felt similar I was taking a doctoral-level people successful precision medicine.
In general, subject connection is difficult, and 1 of the biggest challenges is that the technological process is seldom last but alternatively dynamic and evolving. That tin frustrate immoderate readers and listeners — including reporters — due to the fact that we often privation answers close now. That said, I deliberation that erstwhile it comes to the exposome, the nationalist is afloat susceptible of grasping the nuances.
Everybody eats and everybody breaths, and we each cognize connected a basal level that we are exposed each time to galore biology factors, immoderate bully and others bad, that tin impact our health. I deliberation those of america successful the media tin bash much to assistance the nationalist link the dots connected these issues, and 1 of the champion ways to bash that is to archer bully stories that seizure their imagination.
Humans are hardwired to similar a bully story, and portion not each probe is groundbreaking, each probe has a communicative down it that tin resonate with people. I precocious interviewed a doc arsenic portion of a podcast, and helium talked astir utilizing accelerated genome sequencing for babies successful neonatal intensive attraction units to fig retired imaginable causes of their problems and imaginable treatments.
I asked him to supply a communicative that underscores wherefore the sequencing attack is important, and helium shared a precise almighty anecdote involving a babe who was successful intensive attraction but who is present live and doing well. Similarly, erstwhile it comes to the exposome and precision medicine, we successful the media request to effort to link the subject to the bosom of the reader, listener, oregon viewer.
Connecting subject to the heart
RW: Connecting subject to the bosom and helping radical recognize the value of probe is truthful important, and I wholly hold with you that storytelling is simply a cardinal portion of that. What are your thoughts connected however scientists themselves tin much efficaciously pass their work?
CW: I deliberation if much scientists tin person media training, that would beryllium large due to the fact that it tin assistance them make cardinal messages that marque their probe much accessible. Exposomics is simply a caller country of study, and it is precise exciting, but it needs to beryllium explained successful understandable terms.
Some scientists whitethorn consciousness that they are dumbing down their probe erstwhile they pass to laic audiences and reporters, but that is not so. I similar the punctuation attributed to Albert Einstein, “You don’t truly recognize thing unless you tin explicate it to your grandmother.” Scientists recognize their probe well. But taking that adjacent measurement and being capable to explicate it to idiosyncratic who is marque caller to the tract truthful that they don’t get mislaid successful the weeds oregon successful jargon is essential.
I would besides promote scientists to scope retired to caller audiences connected societal media. I travel a fig of researchers present due to the fact that of my enactment with the Mayo Clinic, and it has been precise adjuvant to perceive what they're moving connected without a filter.
Finally, I would again accent the value of storytelling. By processing an engaging narrative, scientists studying the exposome tin propulsion the tract guardant and illuminate wherefore it matters to precision medicine and quality health. I should adhd that wide connection besides helps different scientists who whitethorn not beryllium acquainted with a fixed field. Greater knowing tin pb to caller collaboration and innovation that would not different person been possible.
More grooming needed
RW: Any last reflections that you would similar to stock with our readers?
CW: I would conscionable adhd that successful my much than 30 years of doing this work, I tin deliberation of precise fewer nonrecreational conferences that woody with subject reporting. It truly is not talked astir a full lot, and that is simply a shame. So, that is an country that needs improvement. I besides privation we would bash a amended occupation successful journalism schools of helping caller reporters larn however to bash this work. There are a batch of breathtaking stories retired determination waiting to beryllium told and waiting to seizure the public’s imagination.
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