STYLE interview 45
Doctor’s ORDERS
Across the world there are Maltese physicians who left the island to push the limits of medical knowledge and who are now making their mark on various areas of medicine. Marie-Claire Grima spoke to three doctors living and working abroad to discover their histories, their achievements, and what pushes them in this challenging and – literally – life-saving profession. Gianrico Farrugia M.D. CEO, Mayo Clinic, Florida “
M
y father was a physician, and he was my inspiration to go into medicine,” says Dr Gianrico Farrugia, CEO of the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Florida. “I saw how hard he worked, how much he enjoyed doing what he did, and how involved he was in social good; in fact, he started the blood bank in Malta. It was inspiring to see how a doctor could have such a big impact on people’s lives. In my fifth year of medical school in Malta, I met Dr Michael Camilleri, a gastroenterologist who had briefly returned to Malta from Mayo in Rochester, Minnesota. I was invited to interview there, and that’s how I ended up practicing medicine at Mayo Clinic. “One of the diseases that I study
is gastroparesis, a condition in which the stomach doesn’t empty properly. It affects a lot of people, especially women – imagine the effect of feeling nauseated and sometimes vomiting all day would have on your life. So several years ago, I decided that I wanted to try to understand the molecular mechanism that underlies development of this disease. My laboratory began to study it, and now, many years later, we can completely reverse diabetic gastroparesis in the laboratory and we are moving to clinical studies with patients. To take a disease that had no therapy and get to a point where we can see several options for therapy for our patients is very exciting to me.” One of the highlights of Dr Farrugia’s career was being asked to start the Mayo Clinic Center for Individualized Medicine. “We take all the information we discover
“We can completely reverse diabetic gastroparesis in the laboratory and are moving to clinical studies with patients.”
about our genes and bring that to impact patient care. So far, we’ve prevented at least 13,000 adverse drug reactions by choosing a different drug or dose based on the patient’s genome. We’re also discovering and diagnosing diseases for patients who had been searching for answers for years, and we’ve been able to help in cancer care by targeting tumours using genomics. “One of the most satisfying parts of my job at Mayo Clinic is being able to assemble teams of experts who can care for patients with the most complex medical needs and give them hope and healing, and a new lease on life. Also, I am lucky enough to work with a number of really talented people and to mentor them and watch them succeed and grow, and contribute to health care. That is incredibly satisfying to me.”