Webster’s dictionary offers two definitions for kickass: 1. having a strong effect on someone or something; powerful 2. exceptionally good; spectacular, impressive. The women we’ve chosen for our second edition of this feature easily live up to both descriptions. They’re but a sampling of the leaders in our community doing amazing work in many areas. They show off the best of Orange County, and we think you’ll be proud to count them as neighbors and friends.
Bona Fides: Chaitali Nangia, M.D. is at the forefront of cancer research. She leads a clinical trial studying the treatment of advanced triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive form of the disease that is more common among women under 40, Black women, and those with the BRCA1 mutation. Her research involves cell therapy, a type of immunotherapy where the body’s immune system helps destroy cancer cells. Specifically, the study uses natural killer (NK) cells in combination with other agents, potentially delaying the cancer’s progression while maintaining the patient’s quality of life. It is the first and only such trial in Orange County.
In her words: “What drives me is (patients’) bravery—their resilience and their will to fight all of this. Their tenacity, their desire to be normal, their thought that ‘I’m not a patient; I’m a human being. I want to go on a trip to Hawaii. I have a grandkid who’s just coming home today.’ They’re facing the inevitable but they’re dealing with it so bravely.”
