Howdy, y’all! My name is Francis Khuong, and I am an MD-PhD student at Texas Tech University Health Science Center. Outside of school, I serve as one of the Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA) Region IX Directors. Before medical school, I obtained my B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Dallas and worked at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center as a research technician in the Wetzel Lab, studying the mechanisms of internalization for Leishmania parasites. I continue to take an avid interest in Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), and am planning to continue focusing on Leishmania during the PhD portion of my training with the Karamysheva lab. In my free time, I play games, hang out with my cat (Nori), and travel whenever I can!