I started as a Research Fellow at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville in May 2020, which was made possible by the CCA travel grant. Luckily, during the uncertain months of the pandemic, I was able to make the trip thanks to my dual nationality between the Netherlands and the United States. During the first couple of months it was challenging to become accustomed to a different country, certainly taking into account the difference in COVID regulations in Florida compared to the Netherlands. There were restrictions on in-person meetings and working on campus, limiting the opportunities to meet all the new (half-masked) faces of the Gastroenterology and Research departments. My research was focused on improving diagnostic modalities for the early detection of pancreatic cancer in high-risk patient groups. This was through biomarker discovery in various bodily fluids and artificial intelligence algorithms applied to cross-sectional imaging. With the expertise gained at Mayo Clinic, I will focus on algorithm development and implementation in the continuing research of my PhD, and hope to catalyze the technological transformation of healthcare in my clinical career in the Netherlands.
