Alex Keyes
They/Them
I am queer & trans and I am a pharmacology PhD candidate.//
My research is on neuro-immune interactions in the spinal cord in a model of neuropathic pain. My long-term goal is to help develop better targeted medications with fewer side effects for the treatment of chronic pain.
I became interested in this field when I was about 15 or 16. I had a good friend who developed chronic pain very young and had to drop out of high school due to it and opiate addiction, and it disturbed me greatly that we really didn’t have good treatments for chronic pain.
I came out as queer before my undergrad, and as trans midway through my undergrad. I’ve lived in Oregon, Arizona, and Iowa now, and have always been able to find community. I’m very happy this initiative exists – I want fellow LGBTQIA+ scientists to always have a community, and to know they aren’t alone.