2026 COMMENCEMENT SERIES: Tumor diagnosis reroutes biomedical sciences student’s career path

On the surface, the end of senior Nelson Smith's time at Marquette is typical of any high-performing biomedical sciences student. He took the MCAT, he's stacking clinic hours and applying to medical schools as he decides which school will best teach him the skills he needs to become an oncologist.

But what sets Smith's journey apart from his classmates' is how he got here - and the challenges he faced to walk at Commencement.

Coming out of high school, Smith always had his eye on health care. His dad works in medicine; his brother and one of his best friends are in medical school. Still, Smith didn't pursue it in his first couple of years as an undergraduate. Instead, he was a biochemistry major.

In fall 2023, Smith was in the middle of an organic chemistry exam when his head began to throb and his vision worsened, getting so bad that he could hardly fill in the Scantron bubbles accurately.

Pushing through the pain and blurriness, he finished his test and sat on a couch outside the classroom in the Todd Wehr Chemistry Building. That's where his friend found him after he had vomited and fainted.

Smith went to the hospital to be evaluated, and after a litany of tests, they found the cause: a grade 2 meningioma in his frontal lobe. The 19-year-old college sophomore had a brain tumor.

"It was very sudden and something I couldn't even fully wrap my head around at first," Smith says. "I just sat with it, thought about it and couldn't believe it was happening."

After consulting with his doctor, Nathan Zwagerman, M.D., director of pituitary and skull base surgery at Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin, Smith underwent surgery to remove the tumor once classes ended and he went on Winter Break.

His recovery was supposed to last a couple of days. Instead, Smith couldn't walk, speak, eat or even use his right arm for over a month.

"I spent a lot of nights sitting alone with my thoughts," Smith recalls. "That's when I really started to grasp the idea that my life was going to be completely different."

But Zwagerman had faith Smith would be just fine.

"Every time he'd come into my room, he'd tell me we'd make it through this," Smith says. "It sounds cliché coming from your doctor, but I think he was truly the only one to believe that I'd be OK at the end of my recovery."

So, with his mother and brothers by his side, Smith worked toward regaining what he had lost to ensure he would be back in the classroom once the spring semester began.

Zwagerman says what stood out the most about Smith is that he framed his recovery in terms of what he was working toward, not what he had lost.

"He approached each small milestone with a kind of quiet persistence," Zwagerman says. "It wasn't dramatic or performative - it was steady. You could see that he had already decided he was going to get back to himself, and everything he did reflected that mindset."

Though Smith excelled through his rehab, Zwagerman recommended that he take the spring semester off to return to his regular self. Smith wouldn't have it.

"Even before my diagnosis, I really prioritized determination and perseverance," Smith says. "If I really want something, I'm going to go out and get it no matter what."

Zwagerman says that despite Nelson's nonchalance about his return, returning to school that soon after major brain surgery is "an extraordinary accomplishment."

"Recovery from a large brain tumor surgery isn't just physical - it's cognitive, emotional and psychological," Zwagerman says. "Fatigue, concentration and endurance can all be major challenges. For him to reintegrate into an academic environment so quickly speaks to both his resilience and his discipline."

After brain surgery, a grueling month-and-a-half of rehab to regain some of his gross motor skills and a clean bill of health,Smith returned to classes to keep pace with his friends and stay on schedule to walk across the stage as a graduating senior.

Smith says Zwagerman's demeanor and positivity changed the way he thought about health care and inspired him to change his major to biomedical sciences.

During his studies, Smith learned about his initial symptoms and really began to understand the weight of his diagnosis. Smith had courses with Dr. Khadijah Makky, clinical professor of biomedical sciences.

Makky calls Smith an exceptional student, and genuinely curious, engaged, and respectful of his peers and the classroom environment.

"Teaching Nelson is a reminder of why being a professor is so rewarding and why this work matters," Makky says. "He is supportive, respectful and generous with his time, always willing to help classmates. Even in a competitive major like ours, he brings a spirit of positivity, integrity, and collaboration that is rare and deeply appreciated."

His newfound interest in medicine led Smith to realize he enjoyed working in a hospital setting.

He became a certified nurse assistant, which he still does at Froedtert Hospital. He also serves on its Adolescents and Young Adults Patient Advisory Board within oncology, creating support materials for patients to use based on their own lived experiences.

"When I was looking at colleges in high school, I really resonated with cura personalis and Jesuit values," Smith says. "I think it's something anyone can benefit from practicing, regardless of what discipline you go into."

Zwagerman says Smith's commitment to helping others shows Smith isn't just reflecting on his experience, he's acting on it.

"He understands firsthand what patients go through, and he's using that insight to support others in a very tangible way," Zwagerman says. "That kind of empathy, combined with action, is what makes exceptional caregivers. It's clear that his experience didn't just change him - it strengthened his commitment to being the difference for others."

Makky has seen Smith's determination firsthand in his academic studies and is unsurprised it translated into his work and personal life.

"Despite significant medical challenges, he has remained focused and committed, refusing to let setbacks define him," Makky says. "He exemplifies the spirit of Marquette's mission."

Now, as Smith finishes out his semester and time here at Marquette, he recalls the determination that made all this possible.

"If you have a dream and a plan that you stick close to, there's nothing that can stop you," he says.