On 31 May, WiN UK held an event for Stroke Awareness Month called Time is Brain, the title emphasising that brain tissue is rapidly lost as stroke progresses. Katie Birditt reviews the event and reflects on the importance of aspiring researchers having access to role models through events like this.
Women in Neuroscience UK’s recent online event highlighted the work of three influential women who are raising awareness and fostering positive change within stroke research. The speakers’ varied range of experiences provided multifaceted insights into the condition and stirred up interest in the audience, who asked many questions. We were transported from the lived experience of stroke to research on proteins that can cause this condition and finally, to the funding opportunities available to support stroke research. Characteristic of WiN UK’s events, there was a takeaway for everyone regardless of interest or career stage!
a platform to inspire, connect and motivate women
“You can walk, you can talk - why don’t you just be happy with that?” These were the words spoken to educator and author, Stacie Broek, by a clinician during her stroke recovery. Stacie’s resilience despite attitudes like this shone through her inspirational talk that discussed her own rehabilitative journey and determination to improve stroke treatment. Driven by her ethos “possibilities not prognoses”, she now advocates for more holistic approaches to stroke therapy and rehabilitation that incorporate the points of view of clinicians, caregivers and survivors. Personal stories like Stacie’s can be just as important as statistics when it comes to patient-centred research and care. Accordingly, this talk emphasised the value of lived experience in guiding research, healthcare and establishing active dialogues amongst the disciplines.
We shifted from possibilities to proteins with the next speaker Dr Gargi Banerjee, a clinical neurology lecturer and neurologist-in-training. The talk provided invaluable insights into the career trajectory of a clinician-scientist as well as the rare condition Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy (CAA). CAA is caused by a build-up of amyloid-beta protein in blood vessels and can lead to hemorrhagic strokes. Amyloid-beta is also a notorious player in Alzheimer’s disease and pathologically there is an interesting overlap between the two conditions. In CAA, amyloid-beta appears to behave like a prion. Prions are pathogenic, misfolded proteins that cause the normal proteins they come into contact with to fold abnormally. Gargi studies the mechanism of human-to-human transmission of this amyloid-beta protein, seen in the rare cases of CAA caused by medical procedures. Unlike viruses and bacteria, prions are still poorly-understood so it is challenging to effectively sterilise medical equipment and prevent the transmission of these infectious proteins.
I was intrigued by the path that had led Gargi to where she is today. As the first person in my family to consider pursuing both a PhD and medical degree, I felt grateful for this supportive space to ask Gargi questions about her own journey and how she balances clinical and scientific commitments. Dr Banerjee’s talk served as a reminder of how important WiN UK is as a platform to inspire, connect and motivate women.
Our final speaker, Dr Rubina Ahmed, the Associate Director of Systems Engagement at Stroke Association, introduced us to the Stroke Association before discussing funding opportunities available to stroke researchers. As a student or early career researcher the unfamiliar terrain of grant applications can often feel intimidating and tricky to navigate. The thought of putting together an application for funding was made considerably less terrifying by Rubina who broke down the process, offered advice and explained the Stroke Association’s research portfolio. I was impressed to learn that a range of research projects, from the preventative through to those focused on long-term care, are funded by the organisation. It was encouraging to discover that the Stroke Association research strategy places an emphasis on lived experiences of stroke and multi-disciplinary approaches to research.
The striking element of this event was the active participation of the audience: they engaged with each speaker, asked questions, and shared messages of support. It was an incredible and affirming space to be in, and one that illustrated the impact WiN UK is having in connecting women with each other across life and career stages. One participant even asked about opportunities to get more involved with WiN UK, illustrating how successfully PhD students and WiN committee members Adriana Zainurin and Yin Yuan had organised the event! I left optimistic, encouraged by the brilliance of each speaker and the enthusiasm of our audience who instilled hope for a future where women are empowered and elevate each other within neuroscientific research.
This article was written by Katie Birditt and edited by Ailie McWhinnie. Interested in writing for WiN UK yourself? Contact us through the blog page and the editors will be in touch!
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