By Dave DeFusco

Maliha Chowdhury thought she knew what to expect when she began her clinical rotation in head and neck surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Living with hypothyroidism since childhood, she had chosen the rotation to better understand thyroid disease, its treatment and the surgical care patients may need. But just before the rotation began, her family received devastating news: her mother had been diagnosed with a stage-four neuroendocrine tumor and would receive treatment at the same hospital. 

Instead of becoming an overwhelming reminder of her family’s crisis, the experience transformed her understanding of medicine and has shaped the kind of physician assistant she hopes to become.

“I was really scared,” said Chowdhury, a student in the Katz School’s M.S. in Physician Assistant Studies. “I thought caring for patients with cancer every day while my mom was going through treatment would be emotionally overwhelming. But after doing the rotation, it helped me so much more than I ever expected.”

She credits faculty support for encouraging her to move forward rather than step away. Although she initially considered changing rotations, her instructors reassured her that she was capable of handling the challenge. Looking back, she said they were right. 

Chowdhury’s interest in head and neck surgery began long before PA school. Diagnosed with hypothyroidism in the first grade, she also developed vitiligo, an autoimmune condition that affects skin pigmentation. Frequent medical appointments, including regular thyroid ultrasounds to monitor for potentially cancerous growths, made medicine a familiar part of her childhood.

“When I saw the opportunity to do a rotation at Memorial Sloan Kettering, I wanted to understand what happens when someone receives a cancer diagnosis,” she said. “I wanted to learn how to deliver difficult news and how to care for patients during one of the hardest moments of their lives.”

The rotation immersed her in some of the nation’s most advanced surgical oncology procedures. Working alongside surgeons, physician assistants and nurses, she assisted in complex operations involving thyroid cancer, laryngeal cancer and reconstructive surgeries performed after extensive tumor removal. As a PA student serving as a surgical first assistant, she monitored patients’ cranial nerve function during delicate procedures, helped retract tissue during operations lasting as long as eight hours and assisted with specialized surgical equipment.

One case that left a lasting impression involved a 23-year-old patient undergoing a laryngectomy after developing squamous cell carcinoma related to smoking.

“It was difficult because he was so young,” said Chowdhury. “Even though his prognosis was good, he was going to lose his voice box. Seeing someone face that reality made me appreciate how life-changing these surgeries can be.”

It wasn’t only the technical complexity of the operations that shaped her education. Watching experienced clinicians communicate with frightened patients and anxious families became one of the most meaningful lessons of the rotation. One encounter, in particular, changed her perspective forever.

A patient newly diagnosed with thyroid cancer arrived frustrated and directed his anger at Chowdhury’s preceptor, a physician assistant. Rather than responding defensively, he calmly answered each question, recognized that the patient’s fear, not hostility, was driving the conversation, and patiently explained the diagnosis until the patient understood. Afterward, he shared advice that Chowdhury says she will carry throughout her career.

“He told me, ‘To be a good provider, you must always remember we are seeing people on their worst days,’” she said. “’When they see us, it’s not because they want to. It’s because they have to, and they need help. We are a sense of hope.’”

The words struck an especially deep chord because her preceptor didn’t know that her own mother was receiving cancer treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering. “It made me think about how I would want my mother and my family to be treated—with honesty, patience, empathy, compassion and reassurance.”

Throughout the rotation, Chowdhury watched surgeons take time to greet family members, answer every question and explain what patients could expect before and after surgery. She realized that exceptional healthcare extends far beyond treating disease.

“It’s not just about patient care anymore,” she said. “It’s about building a community during tough times. It takes a village to get through hardship.”

That lesson reinforced the supportive environment she found at the Katz School. She credits faculty mentors and classmates with creating a community that prepared her not only for the technical demands of medicine but also for its emotional challenges.

“I would 100% recommend the Katz School to anybody interested in becoming a physician assistant,” she said. “Community doesn’t just come from the hospital, it comes from school, too. The Katz School really became my second home.”