( continued from page 33 ) years ago , but maybe subconsciously there was something there that sparked my interest .”
Over the last five years since they began building the program , so much has already changed in this relatively new field . They were the first program in the state to be accredited and one of the first 40 in the world .
“ Cardio-oncology is a new field , it ’ s really about taking care of cancer patients and their hearts , because some of the drugs and interventions that help with fighting and curing cancer can leave you a ‘ cardiac cripple ’ if you ’ re not careful . It ’ s been really interesting and cool to work with not just cardiology , but also the oncology team .”
With the majority of her work in the clinic , she ’ s able to sit with patients and talk them through the information .
“ This is where I ’ m able to satisfy that part of me that wanted to be a chemistry teacher , because I can teach my patients . With the tools that we have in our office , I can actually turn on the echo and show them their heart when they come in . It ’ s really beautiful to see an image of the heart and get an idea of what it ’ s doing internally . When a person actually sees their heart , that catches their attention . Then they take it more seriously and understand the situation much better .”
Just as the team of physicians were a major part of her joining the practice years ago , her team today keeps her motivated now .
“ All my colleagues that work on this program are amazing . If I get tired , they pick me up . Some of my medical assistants , my nurse practitioners , my administrators , my colleagues are on the
phone with me at 8 p . m ., even though they ’ ve got family at home . It ’ s just a special program made out of special people that all want to see good things happen . We ’ re small , but we ’ ve been able to do quite a bit , and it ’ s a lot because of them ,” she said . “ Sometimes I sit and hear my nurse practitioner or my medical assistant calling one of the patients just to check in on them and talk . You see them touching those people ’ s lives just as much as I do .”
Just as her parents instilled a love of medicine into her , Dr . Das ’ son is considering following in her footsteps . He ’ s headed to Transylvania University this fall – close enough for mom to visit , of course – and will be on the tennis team while he considers his future career plans .
“ He ’ s very interested in medicine . He has sat with me many evenings doing his homework when I ’ m calling patients late at night . If I was working late , he ’ d get dropped off at the office and would hang out there . He knows the long hours that go with it , and so far , he hasn ’ t been deterred . Over the years , I think he ’ s really learned the value of medicine .”
But she won ’ t be an empty nester with him out of the house – she has several four-legged friends to keep her company . Even as a child , she rode horses and they ’ ve been a part of her life for more than 40 years now .
“ I had children late , and they were like my kids for a long time . Most of my horses are retirees on their last leg , literally some of them , but that ’ s what I do to wind down when I go home . I walk out to the barn , and I muck a stall , or I give them hay , and just
34 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE