HPB Voices Reloaded

Dr Chan Mei Fen ( DD, R & E Dept), who recently came back from UK, after 3 years of study,  shares her experience with us …

Cambridge

You may remember Cambridge in the movie “Chariots of Fire” or heard of the world-class Kings College Choir.  You may even recall Cambridge from pictures of students punting on the river Cam, or read of the Eagle pub where Watson and Crick first announced the DNA structure, or about the apple tree, Newton and gravity or his Principia Mathematica in the Wren Library where he documented the laws of motion and gravitation.  In all, you would have savoured only the tip of the iceberg of the rich history of Cambridge.

King’s College Chapel: “home” of the world-class King’s College Choir

Established in 1209, the University of Cambridge comprises 31 colleges.  The colleges are autonomous with independent governance in appointing their own staff and in student selection. They function independently with their own property and income.  The colleges are also places of residence where students live and socialise. Some colleges have established science parks which provide facilities for start-ups by students who have conducted research with entrepreneurial potential. In fact, Cambridge is at the heart of a high-technology region, the Silicon Fen, which is home to a cluster of high-tech businesses especially related to biotechnology, electronics and software!

Punting on the river Cam

The academic pursuit

The work in my PhD was varied, interesting and challenging.  The first year was a time of refreshers and learning in classes on epidemiology.  My research focus was on the epidemiology of the risk factors of breast cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), a multicentre collaborative study of cancer and other diseases in 10 countries including the Norfolk community in the UK.  As sex hormones, such as estrogens and androgens are associated with breast cancer risk, I also examined the associations of lifestyle factors, various anthropometry (including obesity), reproductive factors and genetic polymorphisms of sex hormones with these hormone levels.
The workplace “paradigm” where the EPIC Study research staff is located is in the same building with other research bodies such as the Medical Research Council (whose research centres on diabetes epidemiology, genetics of obesity, and explores ways which measures more precisely the levels of a person’s physical activity), and the Cancer Research UK genetic epidemiology unit and oncology department, facilitated and provided opportunities for learning more about the risk factors for breast cancer risk. 

I also attended university courses on bioinformatics and seminars on public health-related issues and epidemiology, down to the biology and mechanisms influencing risk factors of breast cancer like obesity.  This was useful in looking at disease conditions in a more integrated and complementary “systems” approach rather than in a reductionist, subject-specific manner.
Photos:

1. My colleague in the EPIC Study, Marleen, attending my college’s (Downing College) formal dinner
2. My colleagues in the EPIC Study

Work-life balance and living a healthier lifestyle

In my time in Cambridge, there were many opportunities to participate in a range of extracurricular activities during the evening and weekends, and to make new friends from around the world. I joined the choir of the Cambridge University Music Society under the baton of Stephen Cleobury, reknown conductor of the famous King’s College Choir and participated in singing some exquisitely beautiful pieces from Holst to Vaughn Williams, Tippett, Handel, and Bach in the King’s College Chapel. There was time to join wine and whiskey tasting courses, participate in lively debates on myriad topics at the graduate union, and to hear how research ideas germinate and became potential seeds of future start-up companies at entrepreneurial forums.

Cycling to and from my department and workplace was a routine in all weather as it afforded greater flexibility to my work schedule and was sometimes faster than taking the bus! A friend and I took the opportunity of warmer days each summer to cycle to Ely to hear the ethereal voices of the Ely Cathedral’s choir at evensong. Part of the attraction was the superb acoustics in the cathedral’s Norman-English Gothic architecture! Behavioural goal setting was etched on my mind as over a period of time, I gradually became more regular in jogging and jogging for longer hours during the weekends. It was motivational being in the company of people who were serious joggers!   A good way of seeing more of England’s ‘green and pleasant land’ was joining walking tours organized by the Rambling Club.  Also joined a group of friends trekking and recently we hiked up Snowdonia in Wales and the surrounding sister mountains.

Taking stock and coming home

I am often asked by friends and colleagues what I miss most in Cambridge.  I have been blessed in meeting some wonderful people whose friendship I treasure, and whose academia and professionalism I admire. I will miss them the most. 

Coming from a multicultural society and fast-paced lifestyle in Singapore made it easier for me to integrate and to understand a western perspective of sociocultural issues and viewpoints. I take pride in my Asian roots – these and other values have provided a firm foundation and a secure anchor in a different culture and in the inevitable tide of rapid change in a global, high-tech society.  There was a continual reminder and reinforcement in my time there that we can and will continue to learn and adapt.

I look forward to incorporating and applying some of the academic and life lessons in my work and home life.