UM freshman making strides in cancer research

High school science project may lead to a cure

Next time you walk into a gas
station, you never know who
you’ll meet working behind the
counter selling you gas,
cigarettes or beer.

Timothy San Pedro
for the Kaimin

That person could be the one
who finds the cure for cancer.

For UM freshman Adam
Nason, working at the Holiday
gas station is just a way to
pay for his tuition and
continue an independent lab
study that could prove
invaluable to thousands of
people around the world who
have been diagnosed with the
deadly disease.

"I find it frustrating that I work at a gas station because I see the potential that I’m
capable of doing," said Nason, who is majoring in pharmacy. "Yet, I’m stuck in a job
that’s going nowhere. It has no liveliness or challenge."

A real challenge, according to Nason, is attempting to find the cure for cancer.
Scientists might not have to look in the Amazon jungle or the depths of the ocean to
find a cure. Nason said he has found promising signs of cancer prevention in the
same thing that is contained in soda and coffee, caffeine. While working on his
project for the Sentinel High School science fair, he discovered that caffeine stops
cells from regenerating.

"I wanted to see if I could ruin people’s lives by telling them they can’t use caffeine
anymore," he said. "It backfired though and I failed triumphantly."

Nason successfully discovered, through research in a UM lab last summer, that
caffeine, when applied in potent doses to cells, stopped cells from reproducing.

"If I stopped cell regeneration I could stop out-of-control cells, which is what cancer
is," Nason said. "I was shocked that this worked because I thought the caffeine
would alter DNA, which would have negative effects, but it didn’t."

His science project findings qualified him for the International Science and
Engineering Fair in San Jose, Calif., where he met CEOs of major companies such
as INTEL, Nobel Prize winners, and the governor of California.

"I guess it’s pretty cool that three Nobel Prize winners talked to me at the same
time about my project," Nason said.

Nason’s high school science teacher Craig Messerman supervised the science fair
trip to San Jose and said that Nason’s work inspired him.

"It was extremely rewarding to have attended the fair with him," Messerman said. "If
anybody could find a cure, it would be him."Jonell Prather, another Sentinel science
teacher, said that Nason was lazy in class, but had great ambition for independent
research.

"As a teacher it makes me happy that he is pursuing this career," Prather said. "His
cell research is really quite incredible."

Nason came back to Missoula after the science fair and continued his cancer
research in a UM lab that was supervised by Mark Pershouse, an assistant
professor in pharmaceutical sciences.

"Adam is as bright a young man as I’ve seen," Pershouse said. "He’s very visionary
and very stubborn. That’s how he gets things done."

Nason’s cancer research has qualified him as one of the top 80 medical research
students in the nation. It has also given him the opportunity to continue his research
this summer in one of three places, South Africa, Australia or China.

The International Mission for Medicine awards the top 80 medical research students
with an all expenses paid study program, which includes tuition, room and board
and a round trip ticket from Los Angeles.

Nason has asked UM President George Dennison to donate funds for a plane ticket
from Missoula to Los Angeles where he will continue his journey overseas.

"He gave me the thumbs up," Nason said, "but the paperwork has to get ironed out."

Dennison wasn’t available for comment, but Patricia Metz, the assistant to the
president, said that they still had to figure out how much is needed to help Nason.

Nason said he might slow down his cancer research in order to look into and maybe
even find a cure for a disease called sarcoidosis — a rare disease that his father
acquired. It falsely identifies healthy organs as diseased, and attacks them, Nason’s
father Richard said.

"That’s pretty awesome that he would do that," Richard Nason said. "He’s very
ambitious, he has a lot of drive, and is setting great goals for himself."

"The fact that he’s trying to help his father says even more about his character," said
Nason’s mom Debi, who sometimes thinks that he takes on too much responsibility.

Adam Nason is currently trying to figure out the next step in his research and said
that he is trying to concentrate more on his school work.

"I didn’t set out to find the cure for cancer. It was just pure luck, that’s what science
is, pure luck," said Nason, whose I.Q. test scored in the top two percent in the
nation. "I’m just an everyday person with a gift just like everyone else."

http://www.kaimin.org/Mar_02/3-5-02/news6_3-5-02.html