By Maria Spitale

Scientific method dictates that in order for something to be called scientific, an inquiry process must be involved which is based on evidence related to principles of reason.

Clara Westwell-Roper was an exceptionally curious kid who would often ask “why?” or “what if?” It turns out the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, with her mother being a philosophy professor at Capilano College, and her grandfather, an amateur cosmologist.

“My parents and grandparents always encouraged thoughtful discussion and critical thinking in a way that is important in any discipline,” says the 23-year-old UBC medical and PhD student from North Van.

It’s not often you can give a student both of these designations at the same time. In fact, only a select few are accepted into the unique, seven-year program which integrates the medicine curriculum with graduate studies.

“I’ll be able to take my scientific knowledge into a clinical setting,” she explains. “I’m excited to see how I can combine the two.”

For Westwell-Roper, her research interests lie in the area of immunology. She is currently doing graduate-level work at the UBC Child and Family Research Institute in Vancouver where she is learning about pancreatic islet transplantation as a treatment for type 1 (autoimmune) diabetes – more commonly known as juvenile diabetes.

“The interplay between the immune system and metabolic disease is quite remarkable,” says Westwell-Roper of her findings so far.

She has also discovered that death is sometimes part of the whole learning how to heal people process.

“My most terrifying moment in research was when I had to euthanize a mouse,” says the self-proclaimed pacifist. “I always feel a little bit hesitant when killing spiders or flies, but multiply that by 10,000 times and I was quite the trembling, sweaty undergraduate student.”

Some might find it hard to believe that the Handsworth grad has already been researching immunology for close to 10 years, which means she started in Grade 9. “I had a piano teacher with MS (multiple sclerosis) and I was really inspired to learn more about how immune disease can lead to a condition that is so devastating,” she recalls.

While competing in a national science fair, it was Westwell-Roper’s cellular immunology experiment that caught the eye of one of the vice-presidents of Quadra Logic Technologies, a Vancouver-based bio tech company. He then offered her what is perhaps one of the more prestigious part-time jobs for a high school student.

“I did benchwork in the lab, mostly running protein gels, as part of a project investigating enzyme inhibitors for use in treating inflammatory disease and cancer,” she says.

Westwell-Roper maintains that she would have never had the opportunity to explore such an advanced level of scientific research at a young age had it not been for the mentorship that she received. In addition to support from her teachers, she also benefited from attending summer camps put on by Genome BC which focused on physics and genetics.

In 2005 she decided to pay it forward by helping to facilitate Genome BC’s Geneskool program – a non-profit educational program that provides opportunities for high school students, who may not have access to the proper resources, to investigate genetics. “As a student in Grade 10 or 11, the workshops helped make lab science more tangible and helped me to understand what a career in research would be like going forward,” says Westwell-Roper.

One such workshop she has facilitated is Geneskool CSI where students become forensic students and solve a crime using hands-on techniques. And this isn’t your typical homicide investigation as Westwell-Roper reveals. “As a high school student I was an avid reader of Agatha Christie,” she says. “I found that came in handy when coming up with the crimes. I had individuals poisoned by all sorts of things.”

Looking forward, Westwell-Roper is optimistic about finding a cure for autoimmune disorders. “While my research does have considerable therapeutic potential, I hope that as a clinician I can make the most of the resources we do have – and advocate for those we don’t – to improve the quality of care for individuals living with chronic illnesses,” she says.