MCLS Ambassador Lauren Ghazal

Lauren’s Story:

Lauren was 26 years old when she was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin Lymphoma. At the time, Lauren was a full-time PhD student and also worked clinically as a family nurse practitioner. Overnight, she went from being a provider to patient. The deeply intimate experience of surviving a cancer diagnosis and treatment at an early age and during a time of research discovery allowed her to pivot her program of research to adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivorship. Lauren graduated as valedictorian from her PhD program just three years after her diagnosis, completed a postdoctoral fellowship, and is now an Assistant Professor in a School of Nursing and cancer center where she conducts research studies that focus on improving the health and quality of life of AYAs diagnosed with cancer. Lauren strives to make cancer less shitty — especially for this population of AYAs. 

Lauren’s Bio:

Lauren Ghazal, PhD, FNP-BC is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing and Associate Member in Cancer Prevention and Control at the University of Rochester. In this role, she leads several research studies that focus on improving the health and quality of life of adolescents and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors— in particular underrepresented (LGBTQ+ and BIPOC) AYAs with cancer. As an AYA cancer survivor herself, and a family nurse practitioner with a background in economics, she brings a unique perspective to cancer care delivery research. Dr. Ghazal completed a post-doctoral research fellowship at the University of Michigan School of Nursing on the NCI T-32 in Cancer Care Delivery after earning her PhD at the Rory Meyers College of Nursing at NYU, where her dissertation focused on work-related challenges and financial toxicity in AYAs. 

Lauren’s Social Media Channels:

X: @lghazal