5 Questions with Hugh S. Taylor, MD
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Key takeaways:
- Hugh S. Taylor, MD, looks to improve diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis and other diseases.
- For his work, Taylor was awarded the Distinguished Researcher Award at the ASRM Scientific Congress & Expo.
Even as a young child, Hugh S. Taylor, MD, was fascinated by how the world works.
Taylor, the Anita O’Keeffe Young Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at Yale School of Medicine and chief of obstetrics and gynecology at Yale-New Haven Hospital, recalled being drawn to the sciences from an early age, but said it was encounters with patients that drove him to study specific diseases, including uterine fibroids and endometriosis.
Healio spoke with Taylor about his career as a physician-scientist, his passion for treating reproductive health conditions and his advice for medical students today. Taylor also serves as professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology at Yale University, is a past president of ASRM and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine.
For his work, Taylor was recently award the Distinguished Researcher Award at the ASRM Scientific Congress & Expo.
Healio: What was the defining moment that led you to your field?
Taylor: I will answer that in two ways. I have always been a curious person, wanting to know how things work. I have had a burning curiosity to understand the world around me since I was a child. That led me to become a physician-scientist. But it was my patients who drove me to study particular diseases. I look for things that are not adequately understood and treated today. That drove my early fascination with cancers, but in reproductive health, it was endometriosis that caught my attention. Endometriosis is poorly understood, often goes unrecognized, is treated late and not well enough. We have a real opportunity there to make a difference in the world.
Healio: Who has had the greatest influence on your career?
Taylor: I have had several role models and mentors while training here at Yale. One was Alan H. DeCherney, MD, a clinical mentor who helped teach me about some of these medical conditions, what was important to patients and unmet needs in the field. Another was the chair during my time as a resident, Frederick Naftolin, MD, DPhil, when I was still formulating my research career. Dr. Naftolin encouraged me to pursue my dreams, think big, think outside the box. I had a crazy idea to go look at gene expression in fruit flies. When so many others said, “Can’t you find something to do with the gynecology clinic?” his response was, “Great! How can I help?” And it all worked out; I brought something new and innovative to the field that may not have been there otherwise. He was very open to new ideas. I try to do the same with young people — encouraging people to pursue their dreams and not be constrained by the typical boundaries.
Healio: What area of research in women’s health interests you most right now and why?
Taylor: I am working very hard on endometriosis and have been for several decades now. People do not get into treatment soon enough and the treatments are not adequate. I am working with stem cells as well; regenerative medicine has a lot of potential. I am fascinated by the potential to create eggs, sperm or even embryos with stems cells and not worrying about biological clocks. That holds potential not only for medicine, but to revolutionize society. I am also fascinated by other aspects of regenerative medicine like stem cells for treatment of disease, like Asherman’s syndrome.
Another thing that fascinates me is developmental programming. So much of who we are has to do with exposures we had as a fetus. We must learn how to better optimize pregnancy and prenatal care, because we are just beginning to discover the long-term implications on health and disease. In my research, we are looking at environmental exposures and epigenetic programming of the fetus. As we understand more about that, we will potentially be able to “program” the fetus to have a healthier life. Some of the diseases that impact us at age 70 years perhaps had their roots as a fetus.
That is why we continue to study fetal estrogens in developmental programming. These estrogens are there for a purpose. We have measured it, but we never knew what it did. We thought fetal estrogen was a “weak” estrogen. In reality, we have shown it is an important regulator of epigenetic programming of the fetus.
Healio: What do you think patient care will look like in 10 years?
Taylor: A lot more will be automated. Of course, we will have AI in medicine. There will also be more we can do. Scientific breakthroughs will present many more opportunities for disease to be treated. There will be more precision or personalized medicine, with customized therapies based on an individual’s disease. This is already being done to some extent with some cancers, and I think this will also be the case for infertility and endometriosis. Both are heterogenous conditions.
Medicine will become more complex. For routine things, we will use more midlevel providers. There is a huge role for physician assistants, nurse practitioners, advanced practice registered nurses. They will all play a much larger role, with physicians taking on more complex tasks.
Healio: What advice would you offer a student in medical school?
Taylor: Enjoy being a physician. It is a wonderful profession. You can make a difference and do some real good in the world, get to know people and impact their lives. There is no greater joy than that.
Also, keep abreast of the latest innovations, the newest technologies. Dream big. Do not be afraid to bring something new to the field, to innovate. As physicians, we are all trained in science and underlying pathophysiology. We are all prepared and equipped to change the field. I would encourage medical students today to take that to heart. Give something back to the medical field, while enjoying it along the way.
For more information:
Hugh S. Taylor, MD, can be reached at hugh.taylor@yale.edu.