Cats

Jakiro, a 9-year-old black shorthair cat, was given more time with his family thanks to a breakthrough in cancer research partially funded by generous donors to the CCAH. Initially given just six to eight weeks to live, Jakiro was enrolled in a clinical trial investigating a new treatment for squamous cell carcinoma. He survived another eight months.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma is a highly aggressive cancer in cats. Treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation usually do little to stop it.

Veterinarians at the Koret School of Veterinary Medicine (KSVM) at Hebrew University of Jerusalem and UC Davis have discovered that a common cold sore cream is effective in treating the painful eye infection.

After my undergraduate education at Stanford University, I worked at a basic science research lab at UC San Francisco.