Rachelle Brick

I enrolled in the PhD program with a goal to make more accessible, valued, and implementable cancer rehabilitation interventions for older cancer survivors. As a practicing occupational therapist, I had trouble integrating current evidence-based rehabilitation interventions into oncological and geriatric care delivery systems. Few rehabilitation intervention trials involved older adult survivors or addressed outcomes valued by this population, such as functional independence and quality of life. I noticed that these limitations were in-part due to poor conceptualization of cancer-related disability and lack of collaboration among key stakeholders (e.g. older adult breast cancer survivors, caregivers, healthcare providers, etc.) throughout intervention development. The University of Pittsburgh and our PhD program presented a unique opportunity to leverage expertise in oncology, gerontology, rehabilitation, and intervention development. I was excited to be mentored by scientists who had similar research interests and were devoted to training next-generation investigators.