Student Spotlight: Jakub Jarmula

Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in the Chicago area. After high school, I went to college in Philadelphia at the University of Pennsylvania, where I studied neurobiology. I then worked for a year as a postbaccalaureate researcher in a cardiac surgery laboratory, where I first met the surgeon-scientists who got me interested in translational medical research. I then decided to pursue a medical education at CCLCM because of the strong research focus, and I am now a fifth-year student wrapping up clinical rotations.

You recently completed your research year. What was your research project?

I worked in a basic/translational science laboratory at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. My thesis committee members were Drs. Varun Kshettry, Justin Lathia and Pablo Recinos. For my project, I studied different immunotherapy combinations for brain tumors. One of my results was that a combination treatment of anti-PD-L1, a cancer immunotherapy, and ibudilast, an anti-inflammatory drug, significantly improved survival rates. I am currently doing additional research to examine why exactly this combination appears so successful.

What are some skills you developed during your first few years at CCLCM that prepared you for this research?

The basic science research block rotation, which I took my first summer at CCLCM, taught me how to read, interpret and critically analyze research studies. I had the opportunity to learn about research methodologies and presentation skills that I will use throughout my career as a physician investigator. During my second year, I learned about biostatistics and epidemiology from Drs. Abhishek Deshpande and Amy Nowacki, and I am pursuing a master’s degree in clinical research.

Why is it important to you to be a physician investigator?

During my gap year at the cardiac surgery laboratory, I was able to shadow surgeons and see firsthand how operating room experiences informed experiments in the laboratory that could improve patient outcomes. I really like that model of observing phenomena clinically, testing them in a laboratory setting and then bringing that research back to patient care. During my time at CCLCM, I have seen this model performed by several mentors and am excited to make this part of my future career.

What are your future career goals?

My goal is to be a neurosurgeon-scientist. The first step is graduating from CCLCM and then completing neurosurgery residency and fellowship. Afterwards, I hope to have a clinical practice and laboratory where I care for patients with brain tumors and develop new treatments.

Do you have any advice for new CCLCM students?

I think it is very important to come into medical school with an open mind. Cleveland Clinic is such a large hospital, with all the specialties and subspecialties you can imagine. Take advantage of that by shadowing as many doctors from as many fields as you can. I went through my rotations seeing all different specialties, and I learned important principles from each of them. Ultimately, my clinical experiences with patients and surgeons are what really solidified surgery for me. Plenty of my peers have completely changed their specialties after rotations. I think the process works best by having an open mind and being willing to learn in all environments.

Fun fact?

After my white coat ceremony, I went skydiving for the first time with two of my classmates. It was very exhilarating. There was a major adrenaline rush in the beginning, but it is actually very quiet and peaceful up in the sky once your parachute opens. It was a fun way to start off my time at CCLCM and connect with fellow students.