Profile
Andrea Hanvey
about to do a live chat with a toddler climbing on me argh!
My CV
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Education:
William Brooke’s School and Sixth Form 1996-2002, Manchester Metropolitan university 2002-2006, University of Ulster 2008-2009
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Qualifications:
10 GCSEs, 4 A levels, BSc in Applied Biomedical Science, MSc in Applied Biomedical Science
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Work History:
Christie Hospital 2004-2006 Hereford Counry Hospital 2006- present
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Current Job:
Senior Biomedical Scientist in Histopathology
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My laboratory receives tissue specimens from patients, removed during an operation, a simple procedure at the GP, or from a post-mortem. The samples are sent to the laboratory in a chemical called a fixing agent, such as formaldehyde.
Specimens are dissected by Biomedical Scientists or consultant Histopathologists. They are then processed with a number of chemicals. This makes the tissue hard so they can be placed into paraffin wax blocks.Thin slices are then cut and stained with dyes so they can be looked at under the microscope. Further staining techniques may be requested by the doctors to identify specific cancers, bacteria, proteins etc.
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My Typical Day:
I am either in my office sorting training paperwork and policies or doing anything and everything in the lab.
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I start at 8am and finish at 4.30pm , I usually put slides with tissue sections on, onto an automated staining machine for immunohistochemical staining. This staining uses antibodies to identify different tumour cells and types. This helps the oncologists (cancer doctors) decide the treatments for the patients.
As a senior scientist i spend alot of the day doing specialist staining techniques, and checking the tissue sections that have been cut and stained under the microscope.
In the afternoons i spend around two hours dissecting specimens for processing. Specimens ranging from biopsies to large pieces of skins. I also prepare specimens for the consultants dissection, slicing them open and painting them.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
I would buy a local school some science equipment.
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Noisy Bossy Organised
Were you ever in trouble at school?
I got detention once for forgetting my reading book does that count?
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Counting crows, blur, green day, beyonce, Ed sheeran…the list is endless I love all sorts of music!!
What's your favourite food?
Er that’s a difficult one…at this time of year a cream egg!
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
I wish I had loads of money, more time and that my husband makes a full recovery from his cancer
Tell us a joke.
What cheese should you use to hide a horse? …..Mascarpone
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