"The field of immunology is enormous," says immunologist Dr. Andrew Stadnyk. "But most research takes a small idea from a bigger idea. Then it becomes two different problems."
Stadnyk focuses mostly on inflammation in the intestines. "It's remarkable how difficult it is to determine what goes on in the intestines -- even with all our advanced technologies. Certain types of cells make molecules. We'll take pure samples of the cells and try to understand how the inside of the cell makes the molecule. We're striving to find the mechanism behind the phenomenon. But we have to take one phenomenon at a time."
Working for the university has its hardships. "We're on contracts. When a scholarship expires, we have to find a way to continue studying. The competition for dwindling funding is getting more intense."
If you're interested in tackling the unknown, Stadnyk believes immunology is a good path. "You're challenged all the time, but not in such a scary way that it's out of your control. I have the opportunity to continue to learn through my students' experiments. I can also make a contribution to the health of humankind with my research."
Immunolgists have a wide-range of studies. Dr. Robert Finberg, an immunologist with the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, directs his own lab. He's looking at how immunity occurs and why the body responds to foreign substances.
Dr. Albert Agro, an immunologist with a private company, works on an international basis with other doctors and opinion leaders. He spends a lot of his time traveling to other hospitals. "I love designing a way to test a drug clinically," Agro says. "I get to see results. It's a very exciting thing, especially since only one out of 25 drugs ever makes it to market. It's absolutely invigorating."
Dr. Caroline Graham is an assistant professor of pediatrics at a hospital for sick children. Graham deals with immune deficiencies, or primary inherited defects in the immune system.
"I treat a lot of children under a year old. I'll see kids whose immune systems show defects with recurrent and serious infections. A common case is the 'boy in the bubble' diagnosis. That's very severe. We have to perform a bone marrow transplant... to combat it.
"Less serious are allergies," says Graham. "There's still no cure for food allergies, so we have to deal with the problem in other ways. We'll equip a child with injectable adrenaline in pen form to deal with a reaction. Kids have to treat themselves by the first sign of symptoms like itchy skin, asthma, tightening of the chest, swelling of their airways, a drop in blood pressure."
To do a transplant, the hospital will harvest bone marrow from an acceptable donor. "Then we infuse our patient intravenously with the marrow. It's like a blood transfusion.
"Often, there are problems or complications. It's a very long process. It takes months and months. Dealing with families is very challenging. They don't teach you this during your four years of pediatric training. The parents, understandably, are frustrated, angry and sometimes hostile.
"It's tough to treat kids who die. I've had three children die in the last year. You get very close to the families and it can become very intense and drawn out emotionally."
Still, Graham recommends this field to doctors who want a challenge. "It's so rewarding when things work out and you treat a child and they do well. You've made a difference."