What inspires radiation oncologist Dr. Katarina Nguyen? People, science and music

The daughter of two Vietnamese immigrants who came to the U.S. in the 1970s, Seattle native Katarina Nguyen, MD, grew up immersed in two cultures and has a variety of interests, including science, music, sports and people. Already adept at piano and violin, she saw a zither performer at a Vietnamese cultural event growing up and begged her parents to let her learn to play the 17-stringed traditional Chinese and Vietnamese instrument

As it turned out, learning the zither served her well.

When she reached college age, Nguyen was accepted to the biomedical engineering program at Johns Hopkins University but soon realized she wanted to work directly with people rather than in a lab, so she changed her major to molecular and cellular biology to focus on pre-medicine.

“I decided to pursue medicine,” she said. “I remembered how inspiring the providers were when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and how they alleviated the fear that came with a cancer diagnosis.”

Nguyen soon discovered that radiation oncology offered the perfect blend of science and service: her analytical mind loved the science and the face-to-face interactions with patients allowed her to directly help people. She trained in in Wisconsin, Maryland and New York before coming home to Seattle to join the faculty at the Fred Hutch/University of Washington.

“I’ve always wanted to be part of a big, collaborative academic center and I knew this was that place,” she said. “The people here keep up to date with the latest trends and breakthroughs, and we offer the highest quality care by taking advantage of the many resources we have and the research we conduct.”

Nguyen works at the UW Medicine – Northwest campus as well as the Fred Hutch Peninsula clinic; she also serves the veteran population at the Veterans Affairs Hospital as needed. Her focus includes breast and genitourinary cancers, palliative radiation and benign diseases. Additionally, she serves as the Clinical Lead for Radiotherapy of Benign Conditions, which includes radiation treatment for diseases such as osteoarthritis, Dupuytren’s contracture, plantar fasciitis, keloids, and cardiac arrythmias.

“Just because it’s not cancer doesn’t mean these diseases don’t have a significant impact on patients’ lives,” said Nguyen, who is trying to grow the availability of radiation treatments for these diseases.

Nguyen said she’s definitely been inspired by her parents’ resilience and sacrifice.

“My parents worked hard to bring their families from Vietnam to the United States and to send me to college and beyond,” she said. “They were strong role models, and I want to do the same for others.”

Nguyen graduated from Johns Hopkins in just three years then took a year off to explore before going on to medical school. During that gap year, she researched in the ENT department at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and also took up the zither again.

She also competed in a few beauty pageants, playing the zither during the talent portion. She won a tri-state pageant – and others as well, including Miss Washington Earth 2016 – and found that her participation created several unexpected opportunities.

“I had the opportunity to meet the mayor of Washington, D.C., and received an invitation to the White House,” she said. “I also participated in events that allowed me to inspire the next generation of young women to go into medicine. In fact, it got me interested in being a mentor, something I still do here at Fred Hutch. I find mentoring very rewarding!”