Brain Boost: More Than Just Mammograms

Every now and then you might notice we’re fans of TEDtalks. What can we say? We find some little gems to be quite the brain-boost. And healthy brains can make for healthy everything else!

Today we want to highlight this talk by 16-year-old Jack Andraka, who discovered a promising test for pancreatic cancer… when he was a year younger than he is now.

Here is proof that the naïveté of youth can be a powerful tool in solving problems. He believed he could do something, and so he did.

And to bring this back around to our passion for radiology: no matter your age – you have a voice. Everyday we screen for cancer, and everyday we help people get on the road to their best possible health. Anyone can help have a role in this.

Whether you are a young woman doing her monthly self-exam or a daughter or granddaughter encouraging a loved one to stop putting off an annual screening, or much-needed diagnostic mammogram – it doesn’t matter how old you are.

It doesn’t matter how many walls you come across. Jack went to 199 “grown-ups” who said “no” before he found someone who would listen. When he found someone who would listen, major progress was made, and not only in the world of pancreatic cancer. His important lesson: Don’t give up.

We hope you enjoy his engaging talk – we did. Feel free to be inspired and take a lesson from a kid. Persistence, caring, and knowing that you can make a difference are all a recipe for making the world a healthier place. We love that it’s true!

Originally published 7/17/13 on mammographykc.com.