STEM stories: Julia Rivera

Each year the Bridge to Engineering Success at Tufts (BEST) program welcomes a new cohort of students from groups underrepresented in STEM. Over the course of their undergraduate career, the BEST program provides a comprehensive, thriving environment for the students to support their personal and academic growth. BEST operates through the Center for STEM Diversity (CSD) at Tufts in conjunction with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and the School of Engineering, and is led by CSD Associate Director Sehba Hasan.  

This series highlights the work that BEST students are doing at Tufts. 

Undergraduate student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering Julia Rivera, E26, began working at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in the summer of 2021. She aided with a study for lung cancer that was published in 2023. The study, with the Dana-Farber|Harvard Cancer Center and YES for CURE, evaluated the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination in patients with lung cancer. Working with Catherine Meador, MD, PhD, and Justin Gainor, MD, at MGH, they conducted a study with 50 lung cancer patients who were fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The patients represented a range of cancer stages, genotypes, and smoking histories. Rivera helped to analyze all of the information gathered: demographics, treatment history, and side effects.  

The researchers concluded that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe to provide to lung cancer patients, since the most common side effect was pain in the arm. However, there is still more research to be done to see if their findings are applicable to all types of cancer.   

Rivera has continued to work at MGH following the publication of the study. Her latest work investigates clinical characteristics of metastatic carcinoids. This summer, she will continue to gain valuable research experience on a new project at MGH.