MCB Student Spotlight: Marc Garcia
From AP high school science classes to researching in a lab, one student has used his natural curiosity to reach new levels of success and opportunities.
Originally from Tolleson, AZ, Marc Garcia, 21 moved to Tucson, AZ to further his education. Marc is a senior at the University of Arizona and is majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Biochemistry.
Marc is also the president of the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students club, a chem-biochem mentor and MCB Peer mentor. As a first generation student, he is graduating in the spring of this year but his educational journey does not end at his undergraduate degree.
Over the last summer, Marc participated in a summer prep program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The program, MSTP Summer Scholars, is specifically designed for students who are preparing for a MD/PhD goal for graduate education.
An MD/PhD undergraduate research program that facilitates a dual experience of research and academics to allow students to test their compatibility with an MD/PhD graduate program. They are assigned to a research lab with a mentor based on availability and research interest.
As a member of the Maximizing Access to Research Careers program or MARC, Marc was required to apply to seven summer undergraduate research programs. The MARC program is a two-year program for undergraduate students who are interested in an MD/PhD degree and biomedical research. MARC helps transition students from undergraduate to graduate school and a future career.
After he was accepted to the MSTP Summer Scholars, Marc chose a lab focusing on prostate cancer as his main research interest in cancer. The participants worked in cohorts of groups of twelve, from different schools, and lived in a dorm together for ten weeks. They also worked in a hospital connected to one of the research buildings for clinical experiences. Their days were scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and dedicated to research.
Marc was mentored by Dr. William Ricky and their project was centered around urinary dysfunction diseases. Marc explained the overall idea of his summer research. “My project was specifically looking at the effect of senescent cells on the progression of the nine prostatic hyperplasia or other urinary dysfunction kind of diseases.” he said, “That was pretty much my goal for the entire semester was determining how if we got rid of those senescent cells in areas of the prostate or in different areas of the prostate and bladder, or just the lower urinary tract in general, how that would affect urinary function.”
In the lab, Marc was looking for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or BPH which is the enlargement of the prostate gland in men and leads to urinary issues. He described how BPH affects the urinary system. “It just leads generally to urinary problems, like voiding, like void issues.”
He used imaging, and more specifically immunohistochemistry or IC in his research. IC is looking at slides of tissues which have specific biomarkers for antibodies of a specific disease. The lab used mice tissue as a comparative model system and mice models for urinary dysfunction.
MSTP Summer Scholars was a work-intensive experience for Marc and he learned many valuable skills during the ten weeks. Marc spoke about the program’s benefits and how it helped him professionally. “The program was very good at preparing me for what to expect.” He said
Marc continued talking about the self-growth he noticed throughout the ten weeks. “I believe it helps me a lot in terms of just my development as a researcher.” he explained, “My mentor is really good about instead of just answering questions when I ask them, he would try to get me to think through it. And just like networking was a big thing while I was over there. It’s good to talk about like the things you want to do with people that are in those positions to help you out.”
Over the summer, Marc learned a lot from the experience. He talked about the most important lesson for him. “It’s very important to balance like work with exciting opportunities in terms of don’t always just put your head down and work.” He said, “Sometimes you have to, like I said, at work, make those connections. It’s not all about getting things done most of the time. It’s about, like the way you get those things done.”
However, there were some challenges during the program that Marc had to adapt to. He spoke about the obstacles he had to overcome. “I’d say the biggest challenge for me was like getting accustomed to a new area as well as a new project.” He said, “Then having to learn something completely opposite. Breast cancer to then prostate research. It was kind of a challenge to get up to speed. It’s extremely fast when it comes to like the research part of it like trying to troubleshoot things takes a long time on its own and so eventually getting results is the main goal. But there’s like pressure a little.”
Marc is not the only one who can access opportunities like MSTP Summer Scholars, he explained how easy it is for students to do the same. “No one’s gonna stop you from applying.” he said, “You can apply at any time. Well, obviously the deadlines and stuff, but there’s not like a shortage of them.”
As of now, Marc is focused on graduating this spring. He recently went to the Cairibu Conference, which focuses on benign urology.
After graduation, Marc plans to apply to MD/PhD programs and become a physician’s scientist.