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CureCast

The podcast feeding the movement to cure paralysis
Episode 116

Back to School (Episode 116)

Guest: Jason Biundo


Today I’m talking with Jason Biundo, a lived-experience graduate student at Harvard Medical School. He earned a dual degree in Neuroscience and Biology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. It's worth noting that some of that degree was earned from a hospital bed while recovering from his spinal cord injury at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital. Beyond this, Jason is a personal friend of ours and a fierce U2FP advocate. 

We begin our conversation exploring how Jason’s injury influenced his educational trajectory and priorities. We then move to his current work on community integration in research and his efforts to improve gait assessment modeling in mice. 

There is also a fun discussion about the “rambunctious” (Jason’s words) energy that seemed to be present at this past year’s symposium in Atlanta and his thoughts on what to attribute that to.  

Unfortunately, Matthew was not with us for this episode because he was under the weather. But don’t worry, he’s feeling better and will be back for the next show. 

Don't forget to email us your thoughts and inquiries about this episode at curecast@u2fp.org. Thanks for listening! 
 

Listen on: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Soundcloud

Bumper music: Dig a Hole by Freaque

Guest Bio

Jason Biundo obtained a dual degree in Neuroscience and Biology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he completed his Honors thesis developing new technologies for use in neuroscience research. In October 2019, Jason’s life was forever altered when he suffered a severe spinal cord injury as a result of a rock climbing accident. The accident resulted in a T-12 incomplete injury and nearly complete paralysis below the waist. After months of recovery, Jason returned to UMass to complete his degree and managed to graduate on time. He has since transitioned his research interests to the SCI field and worked in Zhigang He’s lab at Boston Children’s Hospital/ Harvard Medical School. 

Jason is a strong advocate for the SCI community to be involved in the research process and has used his own personal experience to provide feedback and recommendations for research and other projects. He currently serves on the Project Review Committee at NASCIC, and recently published a paper titled “Promoting Community Engagement in Spinal Cord Injury Research” in the journal Spinal Cord. Jason recently started his PhD at Harvard Medical School in Biological and Biomedical Sciences and hopes to continue doing SCI research.

Connect with Jason Biundo here:

Related Symposium Presentations

Related CureCast Episodes

  • This interview with Kate Willette celebrates our 100th episode with one of CureCast's original co-hosts and author of the must-read "Don't Call It A Miracle: The Movement to Cure Spinal Cord Injury".

  • A conversation with Fran Visco about how money alone doesn't fix the common barriers patients and scientists face in the research economy.

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