Pioneers of Progress: Dr. Lincoln Nadauld
ST. GEORGE, Utah (KUTV) — Most doctors choose to treat patients, do research, or teach. Dr. Lincoln Nadauld does all three, and the combination is likely leading him to save lives, and someday prevent cancer.
“Dr. Nadauld saved my life,” Christine Woodbury told 2News. “I was given 3 months to live, and that was 14 months ago.”
She has battled cancer four times, and lives to play another day at their family property in the mountains.
“I’m healthy, I’m happy. I feel better than I have in years and years,” Woodbury said.
She's one of the many patients Dr. Nadauld always has on his mind as he works the science to treat – and even cure – their cancers and other diseases.
Research
The medical oncologist was also the chief of academics for Intermountain Healthcare, and founder of HerediGene and Intermountain Precision Genomics.
“HerediGene is my baby,” he said.
His HerediGene project is mapping the genomes of 500,000 people to see what science indicates might happen to them – and intervening before they have a bad outcome.
“If you’re at risk for some kind of illness or disease, let’s not wait until it shows up,” he said. “Let’s be predictive. Let’s intervene. Let’s be proactive. Let’s be preventative. Let’s do something so you never have to experience that heart attack or that stroke or that advanced cancer. Let’s do something today so you are healthy tomorrow.”
Nadauld gave a 23-second explanation of how they use sequencing for treatment.
“What we know in precision medicine is that if we can isolate some of your cancer cells, and take the DNA out of them, we can unwind that DNA. Then we map it and we find the exact spot in the DNA where the mutation happened to cause that cancer. We can then target that with a specific drug. That is the essence of precision medicine.”
Nadauld pointed out, all of his teammates work for the patients, like scientific project coordinator Adrienne Perkins.
“He’s very optimistic, and very encouraging of me,” Perkins said. “(He) tells me I’m doing a good job, and kind of directs me along the way, and just really inspires me with his creativity. It makes me want to be better.”
The chief scientist for Intermountain Healthcare, David Jones, was a professor at Brigham Young University when Nadauld took his class in the mid-1990s.
“I think It boils down to he’s got curiosity and he’s got passion for what he’s doing.” Jones said.
Passion for saving lives, science, community, family
One of seven Nadauld boys, Lincoln graduated from Bountiful High School. He played rugby while getting his undergraduate degree at BYU, his Doctor of Medicine and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Utah, and then did his clinical training in oncology at Stanford University.
“I wake up every morning and I’m excited about going to work, and then, I’m excited about coming home. I feel very, very blessed,” Nadauld said.
Nadauld and his 5-time All-American track star wife, Lindsay, have five very active children. That means tons of soccer games, track meets, gym visits, water sports, winter sports, travel and family time – the best time.
“There is nothing I love more than being their dad. It is the most fulfilling thing that I do,” he said.
“ and save lives,” 2News added.
“Saving lives is nice,” he said with a smile.
More research, more lives saved
As he gave a tour to the interim president of the University of Utah and two of the top deans at the U of U School of Medicine – who were working with him on a scholarship program – he shared stories of more patients.
One ran up Utah Beach in France in the storming of Normandy in World War II. His wife designed and donated a DNA helix chandelier in the lobby.
“Let’s have a patient right as they walk in be able to see the scientists doing things with their samples,” he told his small tour group. “The message is, don’t worry, someone is working on your problem right now.”
Always thinking about the patients.
“It’s the caring about a patient that actually drives the science – and that’s what drives me,” Dr. Nadauld said. “I’m tired of these young mothers and fathers showing up in our emergency rooms all across the state, with advanced, incurable forms of cancer, when we could’ve known it.”
They take a sample of DNA, spin it, and use what he calls, "complicated chemistry and big instruments," to look inside the genome, unlocking – until now – unknown secrets.
“The very first genome that was mapped in history was in 2003. That took 13 years, cost $3 billion – for one person’s genome. Today we can map a genome in 72 hours for a few hundred dollars,” he said.
Today we can map a genome in 72 hours for a few hundred dollars. well. Now we can do that for hundreds of thousands of people.”
“When we talk to our patients, to our family, to our friends, they are stunned and happy that this kind of work is going on, and I think they all have Lincoln’s vision and his persistence to thank for that,” Jones said.
Jones said Dr. Nadauld's work has already affected tens of thousands of people and will affect millions.
Millions, like Woodbury, grateful for Dr. Nadauld's work and the gift of life.
“I stood there on the dock with all of my – not all of, but many of my children and grandchildren around me. laughing. Helping one another write their dreams out,” she said. “It was no problem at all to write my dream, which was to be allowed to have more moments like this, and Dr. Nadauld has given me more moments.”
More moments and a cure mean the most, he said, even though he's worked with presidents, founded Intermountain's precision genomics, and leads cutting-edge cancer research and education around the world.
Dr. Lincoln Nadauld - the 2021 science and technology Pioneer of Progress.
