Dr David Stachura of Philanthropic Pharma: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became A Doctor

An Interview With Jake Frankel

Never look back. I really feel that looking back and dwelling on past mistakes is not in anyone’s best interest. Sure, you can learn from mistakes, but you need to move forward after learning from them. Obviously, don’t repeat the mistake. But I never like to dwell on anything in the past. Take those decisions, accept that you tried to do the right thing at the time and failed, and move on. The past needs to be in your rearview mirror.

As a part of my series about healthcare leaders, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. David Stachura.

Dr. David Stachura is currently the Chief Scientific Officer of SpecBio, where he researches adult stem cells and their ability to heal wounds. He transitioned from being a professor at California State University Chico to performing translational research to help prevent, treat, and cure disease. Dr. Stachura is focused on planning the scientific direction of SpecBio, securing research grants, publishing scholarly articles, speaking at conferences, and fostering excellence in his science team to move innovative science from the bench to bedside.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! What is your “backstory”?

Thanks, it’s great to be featured! My backstory is that I grew up in Bensalem, PA (a suburb of Philadelphia, PA) in a middle-class neighborhood. My parents were both teachers, so I grew up appreciating academics. As a kid, I was always interested in science, engineering, chemistry, and health, and when my mother passed away when I was younger, I dedicated myself to becoming a scientist to help other people. I went to Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA, got my bachelor’s degree in Molecular Biology, and decided to get my Ph.D. After finishing my Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, I headed to San Diego and trained at the University of California San Diego. I moved to Chico, CA after that, and was a professor for many years at Chico State. But my long-term desire was always to help people, which I realized I could do more easily if I went into the private sector. So now, I am the Chief Scientific Officer of a small biotechnology firm here in Chico that is developing treatments for severe wounds and scarring. I also recently started a non-profit biotech company (www.nonprofitbiotech.com) to try and bring exciting health advances to people in a more ethical, humane way.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?

I’ve had lots of awesome things happen to me as a scientist. I’ve gotten to work with diverse groups of people and travel all over the world. I’ve taught classes at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, spent time working on experiments in Prague, and have presented scientific findings in Spain, Australia, Dubai, and Scotland.

I think the one experience that stands out was working with a Spanish graduate student, Raquel. She came to work in our lab at UCSD, and I helped her with her experiments. She had a really cool hypothesis, which was that the hematopoietic (blood-forming) system of the body was induced by the same signals that trigger inflammation during an immune response. That hypothesis turned out to be true, and we published a really important manuscript in the field describing it, which changed the way people thought about blood formation. Working with her was awesome, because I got to experience her culture and approach to science, which was different from mine. We became really good friends and she now runs a successful scientific laboratory at Iowa State University.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Oh, man… This one is tough, but I’ll try to explain. After graduating from college, I got a volunteer position helping out in a famous laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania. One of the senior scientists wanted me to help her isolate individual colonies of bacteria for an experiment. Basically, I was supposed to pick individual colonies of bacteria and place them in individual tubes to grow overnight. But I had never done this experiment before. Instead, I picked individual colonies and placed them all in one tube! Suffice to say, the next morning, my boss was less than impressed- I had wasted lots of supplies, time, and precious bacterial samples to get no results. It was a bad morning :) But, the lesson I learned was invaluable. If you don’t know the answer to something or how to do a complicated procedure, don’t just “wing it.” Don’t lie. Instead, ask for help. I would say that is an important lesson that I learned getting a Ph.D.- I don’t have to know everything. I just need to have the skills to contact people that do know, so we can work together to solve a complicated problem.

Are you working on any new or exciting projects now?

I am working on lots of cool projects all the time, but the one I am really excited about right now is developing methods to grow human stem cells so that they secrete proteins that we can harness for wound healing. We are applying for a patent on this technology, and are excited to use these methods to help people. Basically, we think these experiments will help us to treat cuts, burns, abrasions, and chronic wounds that affect so many people across the world. We also believe that this technology can be used for treating joint damage caused by arthritis and chronic pulmonary diseases.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I can share a couple stories, actually. The first person who made me believe I could be a scientist was my high school chemistry teacher, Christopher Sterman. He really made chemistry fun and made me want to continue down the science path. When I got to college, Dr. Lynne Cassimeris took me into her lab, and helped me do cool experiments fusing cells together to understand cell division. Working with cells under a microscope really led me to continue my academic pursuit and work with Dr. Mitchell Weiss at UPenn. Mitch was an MD and a PhD, which I thought was an awesome combination- he got to see kids in the clinic as well as do research that helped treat their diseases. Originally, I thought that working with kids that had leukemia was going to be sad and depressing. But I realized that because of our research and work, we were helping them. Most of them made full recoveries due to the dedication of the medical doctors and scientists all working together. It was inspirational and made me realize that the work we were doing in the lab directly correlated to helping people. And finally, I have to thank my postdoctoral mentor, Dr. David Traver. He showed me that doing science didn’t have to be a total grind, and that it could be fun. He showed me that working hard in science wasn’t enough- you had to go out, meet people, and make meaningful human connections to solve really complex problems in the field. I really wouldn’t be where I am today without all these inspirational people.

Is there a particular book that made an impact on you? Can you share a story?

There are lots of books that have made a meaningful impact on me, but if I had to pick one it would probably be “The Emperor of All Maladies” by Siddhartha Mukherjee. It’s a book that discusses cancer and how it’s been treated throughout the ages. It’s a great book. My mother and father both died of cancer and my brother and sister are in remission. This book and my life experiences really led me to continue understanding, studying, and treating cancer.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

I certainly try to bring goodness to the world. Over my years as a professor, I mentored many students and helped them start careers as academics, scientists, and medical doctors. Working at a state school allowed me to have lots of experiences with underserved and underrepresented populations of students, which I have helped go on to be successful. These students didn’t have good role models or people to help them understand their potential. I think I at least played a role in helping many of them realize they could achieve success, just as a middle-class kid from the outskirts of Philadelphia did. I’m proud of those accomplishments, and I am also proud of all the scientific accomplishments I have had. My publications have helped move the field of cancer research, immunology, and stem cell biology forward. Now I’m using those scientific discoveries to directly help people at the biotechnology company I work at, and at the new non-profit I started.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story about how that was relevant to you in your own life?

“Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down. You climb the mountain in an equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion. Then, when you’re no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn’t just a means to an end but a unique event in itself.” — Robert Pirsig, “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.”

I’ve always been interested in science and engineering, and love fixing, building, and restoring old motorcycles, scooters, and cars. I also have a doctorate in philosophy, so this book really appealed to me. There’s lots of great quotes from “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” but I like this one a lot. You have to let your own nature determine the speed of your life- no one can do it for you. It’s a personal endeavor, and one that only you can control.

Can you share your top three “lifestyle tweaks” that will help people feel great?

For me? Get more exercise, get more sleep, and try to reduce your stress levels. I like to combine all of these by mountain biking out in nature; I get exercise, it reduces my stress, and I sleep so much better.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why.

Oh, man. This one is tough. But I’ll try.

1. Love what you do. Succeeding in science and academia is tough, and you need to love it. If you don’t love science for the intellectual pursuit of it? You won’t succeed and should probably do something else. You can’t go into it for money or fame. Maybe you’ll get there, but it shouldn’t be your driving force- there are lots of easier ways to attain those goals. My story for this is just my experience. Getting a Ph.D. in biology took me 5 years. My postdoc was 5 years, and then I became a non-tenured research scientist. I finally had a stable academic job when I was in my 30’s. It’s a long road, and wasn’t financially lucrative. You really have to love it.
2. Don’t play it safe. ”Safety” shouldn’t be your number one goal. Playing it safe is never a good goal, in my opinion. Sure, you can put years of work into playing it safe, get a safe job with a pension and good insurance, and just coast through life never really taking risks. But I really can’t recommend that- everything I have done personally and professionally that I am really excited about has been risky. Taking on a risky project, consulting on a “crazy” idea, or leaving a safe job for one that’s more risky and satisfying have all made me a happier, better person in the long run. If you want to make changes and really get things done, you can’t play it safe all the time. Aim high- don’t settle for being mediocre.
3. Never look back. I really feel that looking back and dwelling on past mistakes is not in anyone’s best interest. Sure, you can learn from mistakes, but you need to move forward after learning from them. Obviously, don’t repeat the mistake. But I never like to dwell on anything in the past. Take those decisions, accept that you tried to do the right thing at the time and failed, and move on. The past needs to be in your rearview mirror.
4. Work at institutions and for leaders you believe in. This is really important- you can’t follow someone into battle that you don’t respect. I worked once at an institution that I just didn’t respect my leaders at- they didn’t have any experience in what I thought was relevant for moving my scientific visions forward. I had to leave that organization and work for people that have vision and foresight. Importantly, you have to feel respected and supported by your peers and leaders.
5. Be kind and understanding. I think early on in my career and life I was somewhat brash and impatient- I expected people to want the same things as me and function as I did. I had a limited mindset about how people and their goals in life. As I have gotten older (and when I became a parent), I realized that people have their own struggles that they’re going through. Respect those struggles, give people some grace, and be patient. The kindness and understanding that I try to show people has resulted in lots of long-term friendships and great relationships that have survived over the years.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I think respecting nature and our earth is super important, and would really benefit everyone. You don’t have to be a zealous fanatic about it to make a big difference. Eat less meat. Eat local and in-season produce. Take the bike instead of the car. Use less disposable things. Recycle. Just try to reduce your footprint; I guarantee it’ll benefit us all. If everyone would just think about the collective sometimes, the world would be a better place.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)

Maybe this is controversial, but I would say Elon Musk. He’s a true visionary and entrepreneur, and I’d love to sit and have a drink with him and discuss his thoughts on a wide range of subjects.

What is the best way our readers can follow you online?

The best way would be through LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidstachura), Twitter/X (https://twitter.com/Dave_Stachura), or my websites (www.davidstachura.com and www.nonprofitbiotech.com).

Thank you so much for these wonderful insights!