Will we find a cure for cancer? Maybe not in our lifetime. But Meldrick Mpagi's laboratory research on tumor suppressor gene P53 allows us to view that possibility in the future.

Just two quarters into his graduate study, he's busy in the Center for Genomics Research at Wright State, testing the effects of gene regulation. If P53 becomes inactivated or mutated, it leads to tumors. And tumors lead to cancer. So how can we stop that from happening? That's the challenge presented to Mpagi and his colleagues.

Mpagi notes that his professors at Wright State have made a real difference in his experience here thus far—their availability, respect, and openness.

"Ours is not simply a faculty-to-student relationship. With my involvement in this research, professors look at me as a peer, with more respect"

Our hope is that Meldrick Mpagi—and his fellow researchers—will begin to make a real difference for the health of the human race. And he is optimistic about making a contribution. "It's always something to work for. If you can find a way to eliminate tumors, you're on your way to eliminating cancer."