Dental student research profile: Lala Rukh studies oral potentially malignant disorders
Lala Rukh enjoyed working on research during her undergrad, and when she entered dental school, she jumped at the opportunity to conduct her own study.
Rukh just finished her first summer of the bachelor of science in dentistry (B.Sc. (Dent.) program at the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences. The program provides dental students with the opportunity to work full-time as researchers during the summers following their first and second years of the four-year doctor of dental medicine degree.
Rukh is studying oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs), conditions that precede the onset of cancers in the mouth. She is examining how diet and lifestyle choices can alter the microbiome in the mouth and how this alteration affects gene expression, which can lead to OPMDs.
“OPMDs are non-cancerous, but they have a high potential to become cancerous. Diagnosing a patient with OPMDs leads to a much better prognosis rate compared with full-blown malignancies,” said Rukh, a second-year dental student.
“The goal of the study is to identify high-risk Manitoban populations for targeted oral cancer prevention strategies through diet and microbiome-based interventions.”
Rukh conducted patient screenings for the study at two Winnipeg clinics under the guidance of her supervisors, Dr. Anil Menon, division head of community dentistry and public health, and assistant professor of preventive dental science, and Dr. Vimi Mutalik, head of the division of oral diagnosis, and associate professor of dental diagnostic and surgical sciences.
UM Today sat down with Rukh to learn about her experience as a B.Sc. (Dent.) student at UM.
What have you learned as a B.Sc. (Dent.) student?
One of the most beneficial aspects of the program has been the opportunity to experience being in clinic early on. Normally, when you’re in your first year of dentistry, you’re not seeing patients. You don’t see patients until the second term of your second year.
Since I was working on my B.Sc. (Dent.) project, I got to see patients during the screenings, and I got to observe the interaction between dentists and their patients. I feel like it’s given me a groundwork of skills for when I get to see patients next term. I learned how important communication is with patients.
Why is it important for dental students to gain hands-on research experience?
The program enhances our knowledge. We can learn something in the classroom, but then if we do a B.Sc. (Dent.) and conduct research, we gain a greater depth of what we’re learning in our classes.
I feel that’s why it’s really beneficial. I know it’s impacted me as a student because now when I’m in the class and I’m learning, I’ve seen it in real life, and I’m like, “OK, I can put two and two together.” It’s just an overall better learning experience. I feel like it goes hand in hand.
What is something about research you didn’t know about until you took part in this program?
I learned that every patient is going to be different. As dentists, we must be very adaptable in how we interact with every single patient – whether it’s kids, adults or elderly patients.
I feel like that adaptability is really important as a dentist. By observing dentists over the summer, I really learned the skill of how to talk to different types of people.
Has the B.Sc. (Dent.) experience increased your interest in conducting research after dental school?
Yes, I definitely want to be involved in some sort of research because it’s just a good way to give back.
There’s so much more research that needs to be done, and we need more people doing it. There’s so much we don’t know about oral cancer, and even within dentistry, so after I graduate I would love to take part in it in any way I can.