PA going back for PhD?

[ak20102016]

Hey everyone, first time on this, but I really need to reach out to see if there has ever been another person in my shoes here.

I am a PA (pathologists' assistant)- many parallels to a physicians' assistant- I have a master's, national certification and state license as a pathologists' assistant and work under the minimal supervision of a pathologist in the hospital lab. I primarily gross surgical specimens and do some autopsies here and there. Anyways, ever since I was in PA school, I kinda knew that I wanted to pursue a PhD in biomedical science or anatomy/cell biology. I think now I am settled on biomedical science at this point.

Here's my question: how important is it that I pursue basic science research? I currently work in the hospital (about 40-50 hours per week) grossing mostly cancer specimens. With that, I have a great working knowledge of cell bio, genetics, physiology, etc. And with integration of "personalized medicine" in the pathology department (in medicine in general, really), I also have a great appreciation for the product of biomarker discovery and development (this appreciation is partially why I am so passionate about pursuing a PhD in the first place).

so with my experience as a PA (2 years experience so far), do I need to pursue basic research to be attractive to PhD programs?

And because I see people adding stats to their posts, a little about myself:

undergrad GPA 3.8- BS in Medical Technology (Clinical Lab Science)- I am also a certified Clinical Lab Scientist
GRE 70th percentile (may need to retake I suppose?)
Grad school- honors, school I attended is also one of the top 5 medical schools, US news

Please ask me any additional questions. I would love to hear if anyone else has tried to make the leap from allied health professional to PhD candidate. Thanks so much, Happy Holidays!

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[DokterMom]

Please take this question at face value only (so no 'tone' intended) but why do want a PhD? What is your purpose for going back to school? And do you intend to change careers? Change jobs within your field? Or just enrich your own knowledge base?

 

[ak20102016]

Please take this question at face value only (so no 'tone' intended) but why do want a PhD? What is your purpose for going back to school? And do you intend to change careers? Change jobs within your field? Or just enrich your own knowledge base?

Of course, good question. So maybe the answer is two-fold. 1. When I was in undergrad and grad school, I became overly fascinated with cancer biology pathways, and more precisely, biomarker discovery and development. I even tried to mold my PA position into something that would fit with this- I at one time was the PA in charge of a biobank for cancer tissue procurement. However, that's as far as I could go with my degree- procuring tissues- no actual research; my specialty was identifying cancer grossly and giving the researcher the piece of tissue to run their research with. I want to change that. 2. I also see the value in teaching (though I know professor jobs are extremely competitive). I think I'm like a lot of people in that I was lucky to have come across some amazing professors in my academic career. They inspired me. I think in a perfect world, I could see myself working with biomarkers or somewhere else in translational science in an academic setting.
I think in short, Im an extremely lucky person to be in my field as it is. I make great money, I enjoy a great deal of independence. But I think I can see my passion for this position dwindling in the future. I think I have always and will always be passionate about academics, continuing education, and personalized medicine. I wonder if getting my PhD will allow me to fully immerse myself into that environment.