Tell us about your career / tell us about the role you are currently in?

Before I came to Australia for Master of Infectious Diseases (MID), I have worked as a contractual Tuberculosis (TB) laboratory specialist under cooperative agreement between US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Centre for Tuberculosis and Leprosy in Cambodia and then a laboratory supervisor in a district hospital under Ministry of Health. Currently, I am a second year PhD student at UWA National Centre for Asbestos Related Diseases (NCARD), working on one exciting project combining radiotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy in mesothelioma. 

Why did you decide to study your course?

My decision to choose a cancer research project for my PhD stemmed from MID research project I undertook at Institute for Respiratory Health (IRH) where I used Immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy to enhance the T cell activation and phagocytosis function of monocyte to clear bacterial infection in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Checkpoint blockade immunotherapy is widely tested in cancer. However, it was only effective in less than 50 percent of patients and that made me become so interested to explore this immunotherapy further in one type of cancer called mesothelioma at UWA-NCARD to discover new ways to help patients respond to this immunotherapy. My PhD research uses low dose radiotherapy to remodel tumour blood vessels and precondition tumour microenvironment and that may help sensitize mesothelioma cancer to immunotherapy. 

Why did you choose to study the Master of Infectious Diseases (MID) at UWA?

I have a background in laboratory sciences. Therefore, the Master of Infectious Diseases at UWA suited me so well because MID blends microbiology, immunology and public health epidemiology followed by almost 50 percent of in-depth laboratory sessions. I was able to study and review ranges of infectious pathogens that make us sick in greater details and learned to identify them in the laboratory. Another reason I went for MID was the fantastic opportunity to conduct real world medical research with world class researchers in Western Australia and that gave me a pathway for my current PhD research in Tumour Immunology at NCARD. 

What did you most enjoy when studying the MID at UWA?

Although the Master of Infectious Diseases strongly focuses on microbiology and studying infectious pathogen, I may have been different from others as I enjoyed studying immunology the most compared to other units. My MID research project was also about respiratory immunology in COPD patients. I made lots of new friends from different countries and also local students. We formed a group and discussed things we did not understand. That makes me feel very satisfied and enjoyed during my MID study at UWA. 

Can you tell us about your MID research project/dissertation?

I did one year research project titled “Anti-bacterial monocyte and T cell responses in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” at Institute for Respiratory Health. COPD patients are highly susceptible to bacterial infection and that can lead to acute exacerbation of COPD, which is life threatening. My project examined whether immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy could activate T cells specifically Th1 subset and enhanced the phagocytosis by monocytes against the bacterial infection using peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with COPD. 

What part of the MID course do you think prepared you the most for your current role? (if applicable)

The MID research project definitely prepared me most for my current role as a PhD student at NCARD. I was very fortunate to get a project at Institute for Respiratory health during my MID study. The supervisors were very supportive and I was able to successfully complete two semesters of research work with high distinction and that has paved me way to my current tumour immunology research at NCARD. 

What tips can you share about finding a job after university? (if applicable)

Finding a job can be challenging for every graduate. However, I believe the MID equips students with diverse skill sets in medical science careers. Graduating with the Master of infectious diseases offers flexibilities in career options ranging from working for diagnostic / research laboratories, public health, clinical trials to industry. I encourage all students to maintain a good communication with supervisors / colleagues at MID and attend career fairs and communicate with leaders in the field to discuss career options. New graduates may also consider doing volunteer jobs in research laboratories to obtain some experience. What’s more, as the job market is narrow and highly competitive, students should consider adding extra skills to their CV and one I would recommend in the current context is being able to use programming languages for data sciences (R and python) and learn statistics in addition to your core skills.

On reflection, is there anything that you would have done differently during your MID degree or research project?

I enjoyed research more compared to course work during MID although I have to work twice harder to complete the project within restricted timeline. However, there was another part of the MID project I could not complete, which was the quantification of cytokine releases from supernatant. I wish I had optimized the cytokine release assay concurrently with flow cytometry based phagocytosis assay so that I could examine whether the application of immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy induces patient PBMC to produce more inflammatory or immunosuppressive cytokines after they were challenged with bacteria. 

What information would you share with someone who is considering studying the MID but still isn’t sure?

If students are considering to pursue their postgraduate study in medical science, the Master of Infectious Diseases should be one of your options. The demand for infectious disease specialists are greatly increased as the world is frequently affected by infectious disease outbreaks. Through MID, you will expose yourselves to a variety of subject areas in infectious diseases and that will prepare you better for vast career options in Medical Sciences. Moreover, if you love research, MID also prepares you better for a PhD degree through MID research project you undertake. I love research and now I am now doing my PhD in cancer. 

What is your career ambition - where would you like to be in 5 or 10 years’ time?

I wanted to be a great scientist and keen to stay in cancer research longer because despite many years of research, a cure for cancer has not been found yet. Therefore, I am interested to investigate further into the complexity of cancer and hope to help patients live longer and enhance their quality of life. In the next 5 or 10 years, I wish to have my own cancer research laboratory in my home country, Cambodia, and help introduce new treatments for patients through clinical trials.  

What extracurricular activities did you participate in whilst studying (clubs or groups on campus)?

I have always been highly interested in microbiology; the concept of disease interests me so when I was searching for a degree I knew the UWA Master of Infectious Diseases was the one for me. One aspect of the course I enjoyed was the research project I undertook. I was able to learn many new skills and obtain a new understanding of diseases, plus working with the staff at PathWest was very rewarding. 

The exposure we receive to guest lecturers is fantastic. Not only do we meet a lot of professional people who are working in their field, they are also highly enthusiastic about their topic of interest. This makes listening to lectures so much more enjoyable as you are always captivated. I would like to continue my career in a laboratory setting, either diagnostic or research based.