By Deborah Wormser

Dr. Neda Mitkova Wick

Two years before entering UT Southwestern Medical School, Dr. Neda Mitkova Wick became a research assistant in UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center’s Department of Pathology, giving her an insight into the field that few students get so early in their careers.

She remembers the awe she felt as she watched pathologists calmly describe a patient’s age, condition, and even the symptoms they presented with upon their arrival at the hospital – all based on a sample consisting of a few cells.

“When I distill the essence of what I value most in my rotations and my Medical School training, I find that I most appreciate the opportunity to work with the medical team in determining the diagnosis and giving patients the answer they seek,” said Dr. Wick, recipient of the 2017 Vernie A. Stembridge, M.D., Scholarship Award in Pathology.

The UT Southwestern recognition was established by friends and colleagues of Dr. Stembridge, the former Pathology Chair who died in 2000. The $1,500 award is given to the most outstanding graduating Medical Student whose performance in the sophomore pathology course was exemplary and who is interested in a pathology career.

Dr. Wick begins her residency in pathology at UT Southwestern this summer. “I am honored to be chosen for this award and thrilled that I am staying at UT Southwestern!” After her residency she plans to pursue a fellowship in neuropathology and perhaps another in medical informatics.

As a 7-year-old growing up in Sofia, Bulgaria, she made the decision to pursue medicine. The small Eastern European country lacked access to modern diagnostics and therapies for her grandmother’s breast cancer.

“There was no biopsy available, no special stains were done, no hormone markers tested. Even if, by some miracle, we were able to obtain these answers, there would have been no treatment available to help her,” Dr. Wick said. “When I began my journey through Medical School, her battle, suffering, and strength were my inspiration in every patient interaction.”

Faculty mentors and supporters included Dr. Dennis Burns, Professor of Pathology; Dr. Charles White III, Director of Neuropathology and of the Winspear Family Special Center for Research on the Neuropathology of Alzheimer’s Disease; and Dr. Blake Barker, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine and Associate Dean of Student Affairs.

Dr. Wick chose UT Southwestern because of the warm and welcoming atmosphere of her interview day, coupled with excellence in training. “The school faculty, residents, and staff seemed invested in, passionate about, and proud of their institution,” she said.

Both parents and her brother are engineers. Her parents had a small engineering company in Bulgaria when a client in California offered her father a job. The family moved in 2000. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of California, Davis.

She and her husband, William Wick, got married just before she started Medical School. An Army veteran, Mr. Wick is completing a degree in psychology with a minor in criminal justice. In their free time, they enjoy working to restore a red 1973 Volkswagen Beetle convertible and doting on her niece and nephew and on their 6-year-old shelter “puppy,” Charlie.

One of her favorite things at UT Southwestern was working with her friend and fellow Class of 2017 student, Dr. Ashley Yoder, to design the Medical Education track, a four-year program for those interested in teaching that leads to an M.D. with distinction in Medical Education. “This has been our ‘baby’ for the past four years,” Dr. Wick said. She also worked as a teaching assistant in the Cell Biology course.

Other UT Southwestern honors include her induction into the Gold Humanism Honor Society.

Dr. Burns holds the Jane B. and Edwin P. Jenevein, M.D. Chair in Pathology.

Dr. White holds the Nancy R. McCune Distinguished Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Research.