After recognizing my family history and my own elevated risk for breast cancer, I became deeply interested in breast cancer and its impacts. I then began researching ways to reduce my risk and to understand any unique vulnerabilities to the disease that Asian Americans face.

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I sought to deepen my knowledge of breast cancer through research. Under Dr. Lihua Liu at the Keck School of Medicine, synthesizing literature about risk factors and analyzing differences in surgical treatment settings, I gained an early understanding in how inpatient versus outpatient care can influence breast cancer outcomes.

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I continued to expand my skills in data analysis and research writing under Dr. Lin Gomez at UCSF’s DREAMLab, where I analyzed registry data to explore how race influences incidence trends, with an emphasis on the need for disaggregated data.

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Aiming to spread awareness on how breast cancer affects different racial groups and and that data-driven research can address real-world health issues, I presented as 1 of 12 presenters  my poster “Emerging Patterns of Breast Cancer Incidence in Asian Americans,” to 250+ students and researchers at the 2024 Annual Meeting's Special Program for High School Students by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

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Inspired by the rising breast cancer rates among younger Asian American women and the skills I gained in research writing, I wrote a 30-page proposal for a culturally-sensitive application to help young Asian women to increase breast cancer awareness, reduce risk, and reduce stigma; submitted to the MIT Think Scholars Program.

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As 1 of 2 students selected, I presented the poster “Rising Rates: Breast Cancer Trends Among Asian American and Pacific Islander Women in the U.S.” at the 2024 AACR Annual Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved's Special High School Program, highlighting newly released data showing incidence rates among Asian American women rising beyond previous records.

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Partnering with two peers, I began writing a review article with the aim to publish in the National Human Genome Research Institute and the Smithsonian's partnership publication, Genomics: Insights, in a rigorous two-month process involving regular group meetings and review deadlines.

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Reworking my original research proposal into a new one, I focused on developing a platform that helps young women understand their breast cancer risk and lifestyle factors through interactive surveys, research-backed tips, and guided exposure to public data tools; submitted for school research grant consideration.

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Within DREAMLab, I worked with Dr. Salma Shariff-Marco and Julie von Behren to review and create literature tables on racialized economic segregation, using the Index of Concentration at the Extremes (ICE), and its impact on breast cancer outcomes.

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After months of meetings and feedback from a Johns Hopkins reviewer, I co-authored the review article "The Interplay of Genetics, Sleep Deprivation, and Socio-environmental Factors on Alzheimer’s Disease Risk" in Genomics:Insights.

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For my reworked proposal, I was one of two Upper School students at Polytechnic School awarded the Dedrick Kon ’96 Fellowship for Exploration of the Life Sciences, receiving a grant to continue developing the platform.

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At the Archer STEM Symposium, I was honored as one of 12 Research in Science and Engineering (RISE) Scholars in the Los Angeles area, received a stipend, and delivered a 10-minute presentation on my research.

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During my DREAMLab internship, I co-authored a manuscript, contributing to the Introduction, Discussion, and Conclusion, whose abstract was selected for oral presentation at the 2025 North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR) conference (p. 87).

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Over the summer, with the help of research grants, I designed Pearl Watch, a platform that helps young women and adolescents assess their personal breast cancer risk and awareness, recognize healthy and unhealthy lifestyle factors, and access research-backed tips and simplified data tools to build habits that support long-term breast health.

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