Tatsura Jo, 42
Doctor/Researcher from Nagasaki
Could you describe your research?
We’re seeking to understand the what causes leukemia (blood cancer), and how to treat it. With current drug treatments, only 20-30% can be cured, so we must develop new technologies. We’re using new treatments based on DNA research. I’m also trying to develop a new technology by infecting patients with a herpes virus; the virus grows, killing the cancer cells, as well as the infection cells. Treatments such as chemotherapy and anti-cancer drugs try to kill cancer cells, but normal cells are also damaged. The new technology should allow us to treat the cancer cells alone.Could you describe your routine?
I research from 9am until 10 or 11pm. It’s not so long.What are the good/bad points of your job?
I research in the hope of curing cancer patients--but there’s no pay. Being a doctor or researcher is very good because I can help suffering people. We do mouse experiments, but I don’t like experimenting on animals because I see the value of life, animal and human. I think their value is equal.How much time off do you get?
Two to four days a month. Obon and New Year’s might be three consecutive days. That’s all.How’s your salary?
I don’t get paid to research. I get a laboratory and equipment from Nagasaki University. Since I have a family to take care of, I work as a doctor in a hospital. For that I get ¥500,000 a month. In December I got an extra ¥100,000. I guess you could call that a bonus. My wife wants me to be a full-time doctor!Why did you want to become a doctor?
During my school years I wanted to research literature, but my parents always said, “you will become a doctor.” When I failed the entrance exam to Kyoto University's Literature Department, my mom cried all night. She convinced me to go to medical school. After a year as a ronin studying at a yobiko (cram school), I got accepted. When I graduated from medical school, I worked as an intern for two years. My first patient was an 80 year-old leukemia patient. He was suffering severely. Right there I decided I had to kill the virus.the end
This interview was originally published in Kansai Time Out magazine.