When she lost a relative to cancer ten years ago, the Egyptian cancer researcher Sara Hegy Ahmed got motivated to confront this disease through research and discovery of advanced treatment methods.
The tragic loss of her relative, a young bride-to-be, was a turning point in Ahmed’s academic career. After she got a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy and biological sciences at the German University in Cairo, she completed her graduate studies in cancer research in Germany, at the University of Heidelberg and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ). The latter institution awarded her a Richtzenhain Doctoral Prize in 2021.
In a Zoom interview, Ahmed told Al-Fanar Media: “My young relative’s illness was an additional motive to employ science to produce knowledge on how to treat cancer, in the hope of ultimately contributing to improving the lives of patients. Research acquires its importance from its role to help people lead better lives.”
In her master’s and doctoral research, Ahmed discovered that sex hormones can affect non-sex organs, such as the gut.
“Sex hormones’ effects are not limited to sex organs only, but also affect other organs such as the intestines,” she said. “These hormones go to intestinal stem cells and divide, leading the tumor to grow.”