By: Cameryn Davis, Verayna Newland and Fatemeh Omidi Bidgoli
If anyone had told us that we would leave the lab bench and swim in the open ocean from Alcatraz Island to the San Francisco mainland, we would not believe it. But that’s exactly what happened.
About a year ago, the Finlayson family visited the Blazer-Yost lab and shared the bittersweet yet inspiring story of their family member, Kate Finlayson, who passed away from hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is caused by an excessive amount of a fluid in the brain called cerebrospinal fluid. This disease has no cure. To commemorate Kate, the Finlayson’s created an organization called Team Hydro to raise money for hydrocephalus research. They started the Alcatraz swim because Kate loved swimming.
They invited us to the swim but we did not think much of it, until Cameryn—a researcher in the Blazer-Yost lab—started talking about how this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. She argued that it was for a good cause, but if she was going to do it, she would not want to do it alone. Verayna and Fatemeh—both Ph.D. students—decided to sign up as well. The Blazer-Yost lab has been studying hydrocephalus for years, and as hydrocephalus researchers, we all feel passionate about trying to find a cure for the disease.
We started training for the swim six months beforehand in the IU Natatorium, which contains an Olympic-sized pool. Verayna is not a swimmer, but thankfully Fatemah and Cameryn had swimming experience. We did many workouts together and were very sore afterward!
Before we knew it, we raised $1,800 and were in San Francisco. The swim was only one day away and it did not feel real until we picked up our wetsuits at a sporting goods store. We practiced swimming in the wharf of the bay (which is an enclosed area) and felt pretty confident. We knew the water would be cold, but with the wetsuit it did not feel too bad. We were told the wharf water temperature was a little warmer than the open ocean, but we were sure it couldn’t be that much of a difference. We went back to the hotel, ready to swim in the morning.
The swim was at 8 a.m. but we had to be on the shore by 6 a.m. for a safety briefing. We checked in and were given matching bright green swim caps, a Team Hydro t-shirt, and a wrist band with a name on it. The name on the wrist band was not our own name, but the name of someone who is currently living with or passed away from hydrocephalus. One band read “In Honor of Kyle Gospodarek.” We had the privilege of meeting Kyle in person at scientific conferences. Despite his disease, Kyle went through medical school and is a doctor who teaches classes at the IU School of Medicine. He is one of the toughest people we have met.
We got to meet the other swimmers, who were much more experienced than us. There was a large group of young men that we discovered were the Stanford water polo team. Of course they didn't swim with a wetsuit, a speedo would do the trick. We still think they are crazy. We also were not the only researchers swimming. Dr. Ryann Fame, who has a research laboratory at Stanford, joined the swim this year for her second time at this event.
The safety team gave us a rundown of the current, the water temperature, and the wind. The current was moderate with little to no wind, but the water was a biting 54 degrees Fahrenheit. We felt confident that our wetsuits would keep us warm. While we listened to the briefing, a seal was showing us how it's done in the wharf, gracefully swimming from one side to the other, bobbing its head above the waves to cheer us on.
We took a giant group photo and were off to the boats that would take us to Alcatraz Island. A confession: we didn’t actually swim from the island. The currents and large rocks on the shore of Alcatraz make it too dangerous. Instead, the boats took us close to the island and we jumped directly into the water. Remember how we said we were confident the wetsuits would keep us warm? As soon as we hit the water, the wind got knocked out of us. It was so cold, even with the wetsuit!
Now, there are many differences between swimming in the pool versus swimming in the Pacific Ocean. The ocean water is very murky. We could only see our hands in front of us while we swam. Verayna accidentally crashed into Fatemah once during the swim. In the ocean, there is nothing to guide your path. We were directed to aim for the Ferris wheel on the distant wharf to make sure we were swimming in the right direction. Even with those directions, we had a few members of the safety team call out to us and redirect our swim path. The pool that we trained in had a warm water temperature of about 79 degrees. Now that we were swimming in freezing water, our leg muscles were not happy. Even our toughest workouts in the Natatorium did not compare to this. “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming,” from the movie Finding Nemo, became our motivational motto.
Even though the swim was challenging, the experience was amazing. From our vantage point, we could see Alcatraz Island behind us, the wharf in front of us, and the mist rolling over the Golden Gate Bridge to the right. Not many people can say they’ve seen that view. As we neared the wharf, we could hear people cheering and encouraging us to keep going. When we walked onto the beach (with shaky legs), a feeling of accomplishment washed over us. We challenged ourselves and were able to do something we normally would never do. We also felt a sense of accomplishment for the hydrocephalus community. As a group, Team Hydro was able to raise over $102,000 for hydrocephalus research!
The money raised will be used for two “seed” grants. These grants are given to up- and-coming hydrocephalus researchers to help kick-start their projects. The goal is that these scientists will continue their work and receive more money from larger sponsors such as the National Institutes of Health or the Department of Defense. Dr. Blazer-Yost received two of these seed grants in 2015 and 2021, which allowed her to start two different research projects and eventually receive Department of Defense grants worth almost $12 million dollars for hydrocephalus research! As you can see, these seed grants have a large impact, and the Hydrocephalus Research Center would not have come to be without them.
We are very thankful for the chance to participate in this swim and give back to the hydrocephalus research community and continue spreading awareness about research. As we already mentioned, hydrocephalus does not have a cure. Over a million people in the United States suffer from the disease and all of them must undergo brain surgery. This is not a sustainable form of treatment since 50% of shunts will fail within two years, and most shunts will fail eventually, leading to more brain surgery. As a research lab, our goal is to find a non-invasive treatment for hydrocephalus that can be taken on an as needed basis.
Learn more about hydrocephalus
- Hydrocephalus Research Center at the IU Indianapolis School of Science
- Hydrocephalus facts from Team Hydro
- Hydrocephalus resources from the Hydrocephalus Association