Thomas Pak

I was born and raised in Iowa. My parents divorced and I moved around a lot. I was a Pell Grant Recipient, a student of financial need, at Johns Hopkins University. I came back to Iowa for the Medical Scientist Training Program. 

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My journey to medicine came from my experience with disease. Diseases tear families apart. I lost my younger cousin to sepsis, and almost lost my mother to cancer. Medicine is what kept my mom alive, and gave my cousin a fighting chance. Importantly, it was the doctors who were there to help our families through this difficult time. These doctors inspired me to make the same profound impact.