Starting early on cancer research by building connections and good relationships, Aram Centeno aims to one day develop medicine for cancer treatments after attending graduate school.
Centeno, a recent graduate from the Philippines studying molecular cell biology, said during his first few years at BYU–Hawaii, he focused more on his grades. Perfect grades were his main goal but after a while, due to the stress and disappointment of not getting the grades he wanted, he realized that he needed to invest in building connections.
“Your grades are less important than your connections. Your grades are less important than treating people nicely. Your grades are less important than treating yourself nicely,” said Centeno.
Choosing cancer research
Ever since he was young, Centeno was always fascinated by science. He shared a story of how when he was a child, every time he saw his mom’s nail polish or the ethyl alcohol in their house, he would mix them and pretend that he was a scientist. Later, his aunt was diagnosed with Lymphoma cancer.
“At that time, I started reading encyclopedias, looking for some kind of cure and by using the internet, [I] was looking for possible diagnoses and possible treatments,” said Centeno.
After taking some classes at BYUH, Centeno realized his studies had something in common: cancer biology. “After that, I thought, ‘I want to do cancer biology’ specifically apoptosis, the cell death,” he shared.
In May 2018, Centeno started working with associate professor in biochemistry, Dr. Georgi Lukov, to do more research regarding cancer biology. Centeno wanted to work with Dr. Lukov in the past year, but it wasn’t until 2018 when an opening in Dr. Lukov’s research team became available.
Dr. Lukov remarked he wanted Centeno to gain more experience and learn more from his classes before working with him. “He had to know how to do subculture, how to harvest cells and process them, how to process samples… it was just way too much. He hadn’t had any biochemistry labs, so he had to learn on his own how to do some of these,” he said.
Centeno’s determination impressed Dr. Lukov and he explained, “When he plans for something, he does it and he gets his results… He’s trying to do whatever he can. He’s driven.”
Scientia
The support system regarding research at BYUH is very limited, according to Centeno. He joined the Health Professions club and discovered that it focused more on pre-med students. During his second year, he realized he wanted to do research but there wasn’t someone he could talk to about it.
“I didn’t know anybody who wanted to do research or went to do research… So, I thought, ‘What if I could establish an organization that would help [students]?’”
Centeno wanted to provide incoming students with information about possible career opportunities and help connect those students with the right people on campus.
Trying to establish Scientia, a club dedicated to connecting students to professionals in different fields of science, was hard for Centeno and his other members. Students were busy and it was hard to gather members of the club for meetings and service projects.
Whenever they had meetings, members would be missing and if there was an activity they wanted to do, setting a specific time and day was hard. However, Centeno remained positive despite the lack of numbers for the club and was motivated by his desire to serve.
Centeno explained how he gets his motivation and positivity from the teachings of the church. “It’s [natural desire] for me… to help them to follow the same track I’m following,” he shared.
Ivy Doringuez, a junior from the Philippines studying biology, said Scientia has allowed her to meet people from different fields of science and hear more about their academic goals. She added Centeno is a selfless president because he often thinks of opportunities that could help students build their experiences while in school.
Doringuez shared that Centeno’s leadership skills stood out to her the most. She said, “Even when we were still classmates and Scientia wasn’t organized yet he would lead us, his friends, by reminding us of an upcoming test… He would suggest things that we should do in preparation for a class.”
Personal life and goals
As a science student, Aram said he doesn’t get much sleep. However, when he has free time, he mostly spends it either catching up on sleep or watching shows and movies on Netflix.
Ryan Domingo, a senior from the Philippines studying accounting, said, that Centeno is very studious. “Every time we ask him out for dinner or to hang out somewhere, he always declines the offer because he’s into studying.”
Domingo also shared that Centeno is the executive secretary for his ward and is dedicated to fulfilling his calling. “He would stick with bishop from very early morning till seven in the evening.”
Other than his goal of becoming a future cancer pharmacologist who incorporates the ideas the Philippines has regarding medicinal plants such as Pandan to develop new drugs for cancer medicine, Centeno said he wanted to get married next year.
“Lately, it’s been stressful for me. I feel like I need a companion. I’m 25 and I need someone in graduate school and it’s going to be hard, so I need a rod to hold on to,” he shared.
Writer: Esther Insigne