Sleigh-Hem fever!

This year we decided to inject some shameless fun, and a little healthy competition, into the build-up to Christmas with a highly addictive seasonal game called Sleigh-Hem. The idea was that you had to aid Santa’s safe passage above the rooftops, avoiding the chimney pots and storm clouds while collecting as many Christmas puds as possible. The person with the highest score would win a bottle of champers. Sounds simple enough but it required masterful mouse control and a lot of practice!

After a slow start, the leader board soon became full as the competition to win a bottle of champagne hotted up. Despite one early high scorer being top for a week ('SW'), the eventual winner came out of nowhere with an unbeatable score in the dying minutes of the 24th. Congratulations to ‘KG’ who was our winner with a staggering score of 26,548.

We have already had requests from our clients for more seasonal games so watch this space…

Susie

A Thought on Modern Cancer Therapies

As a medical writer aiming to keep abreast of new developments, I recently read a report on the genetic analysis of lung tumours with interest, especially having worked in cancer genetics as a research scientist. In this Nature article, the authors analysed a sample of lung adenocarcinomas and identified 26 genes that were highly mutated, including some not previously associated with lung cancer and some known to be mutated in other cancers.¹ These genes will no doubt be the subject of further study, paving the way for possible new targets of therapy in the future.
This work is one example of an increasing view in the modern post-genomic era of cancer not simply as an anatomically-defined disease, but as a collection of diseases owing to particular dysfunctional genes. ^{2, 3} So to a clinician, a patient does not merely present with lung cancer or breast cancer, but a cancer of mutated genes x, y and z. Hand-in-hand with this view is the increasing trend for developing targeted therapies, where a drug no longer strikes tumours by virtue of their rapid growth, taking a host of other, healthy tissues with them, but hones in on the abnormality specifically expressed in the cancerous cells. Herceptin, which targets the HER2 receptor that is over-expressed in 20-30% of breast cancers,⁴ and Glivec, inhibitor of the aberrant kinase expressed by the BCR-ABL gene that causes chronic myeloid leukaemia,⁵ are only two examples that have made a great impact on our quest for effective therapies.

We know that some breast cancers show HER2 over-expression but others do not, and that genes can be mutated in some lung tumours but not in others, illustrating the fact that different faulty genes contribute to tumour development in different individuals. ¹ Furthermore, evidence suggests that the mutational status of certain genes can affect a tumour’s sensitivity to chemotherapy or radiotherapy.⁶ Our understanding of the roles played by different genes is ever-expanding thanks to basic bench research, be it with in vitro systems, in vivo models, using single-celled organisms or more evolved animals. Together with the rapidly developing technologies for genetic profiling, it may one day become possible to determine the genetic basis for every patient’s cancer and tailor a cocktail of therapies just for them.⁷ We may never find that elusive “cure” for cancer, but using our best efforts to understand its causes and progression, we may be able to tame it into something we can control and live with.⁸

References
1. Ding L et al. Somatic mutations affect key pathways in lung adenocarcinoma. Nature 2008; 455: 1069-1075.
2. Geddes L. Cancer special: living with the enemy. New Scientist; 22 October 2008. Available online at: www.newscientist.com [accessed January 2009].
3. Dong LM et al. Genetic susceptibility to cancer: the role of polymorphisms in candidate genes. JAMA 2008; 299: 2423-2436.
4. Roche Products Ltd. Herceptin Summary of Product Characteristics (Date of revision: September 2008). Available online at: www.emc.medicines.org.uk [accessed January 2009].
5. Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd. Glivec Summary of Product Characteristics (Date of revision: November 2007). Available online at: www.emc.medicines.org.uk [accessed January 2009].
6. Weichselbaum RR et al. An interferon-related gene signature for DNA damage resistance is a predictive marker for chemotherapy and radiation for breast cancer. PNAS 2008; 105: 18490-18495.
7. Ley TJ et al. Molecular sequencing of cytogenetically normal acute myeloid leukaemia genome. Nature 2008; 456: 66-72.
8. Aldhous P. Cancer special: old killer, new hope. New Scientist; 22 October 2008. Available online at: www.newscientist.com [accessed January 2009].

Ellen

Job Application Tips for Designers

Reviewing the CVs of people I'm looking to employ is a weekly task for me. It is especially important at the moment as I am trying to recruit a junior designer/interactive developer for TVF Group.

The thing that I regularly find is that designers might be good at putting together a portfolio to showcase their work, but are not as skilled when it comes to writing a CV.

I want to take this opportunity to share my experience of the way that companies look for new employees and give a few pointers on what I look for when I read through CVs and portfolios.

When you respond to an advert, there should be three things that you send in with your application: (1) a covering letter, (2) your CV and (3) your portfolio.

(1) Your covering letter is an opportunity to make your application relevant to the job in question. Your CV will probably be quite generic, but your covering letter can take the facts from your CV and show how these relate to the role you are applying for. This is one of the ways that you can differentiate yourself from everyone else applying for the role.

(2) Your CV tells the company about your experience, skills, education and interests. This is an important document - as much so as your portfolio - because it tells the company about how you work, what you've worked on, what you know, how you learn and what you want to be. Remember to include everything here. If your CV is too brief, it can appear as though you have nothing to put into it. Your CV demonstrates your commercial and academic performance. HR people will be looking at this to check that you have enough relevant experience, qualifications and skills to make you a viable candidate.

Your covering letter and CV together serve to show the person you are and your goals, drive, personality and approach to creativity.

(3) Your portfolio shows that you can actually do what your CV says you can do. But there is something significant that commonly gets missed: your portfolio needs to be relevant and needs to show some commercialy viable work. I regularly see people applying for a job as a designer by sending a portfolio that contains artwork. Whilst it's good to see that you are so creative (and on the strength of some of the work I've seen recently, take time to only pick your best work), I need to see that you can use your creativity to communicate information in a commercial context. Make sure you include at least a few examples of brochures /adverts / posters / branded items / stationary. This stuff is essential to show your ability to work within the constraints given by the requirements of the project, brand and format. It doesn't really matter how you send your portfolio - real print, PDF or website. As a personal preference, I like PDF because I can print it if I want to and I know that I'm seeing the work as intended, rather than how my web browser has chosen to implement it.

These three elements work together to show how you as an individual fit the role as a designer and how you fill the requirements of the advert, but there is one other thing that you can do: phone. Taking the time to make a call for feedback will always count in your favour and can help you fine-tune your CV and portfolio.

Good luck with your job hunting, and please do send me your CV - I keep them on file in case I need either permanent or freelance staff.


Alan