According to Nathaniel Myall, MD, a good doctor is one who looks at medicine holistically.

“Holistic medicine for me is not defining a patient by XYZ conditions, but looking beyond that,” he says.

This view of medicine developed, in large part, from Myall’s own experience as a patient. He was born with a rare genetic condition called Nager syndrome, which leads to underdeveloped bones in a person’s face, hands, and arms. This can cause delayed speech development and feeding and breathing problems during childhood, along with hearing loss.

“I wanted to use that experience in a productive way and apply it knowing what the patient experience is like,” says Myall, who grew up in Redwood City and received all of his childhood care at Stanford Medicine. “I learned how important it is in medicine to see our patients as full people.”

Myall’s experience as a patient and his fascination for medicine spurred him to become a doctor. He took premed courses as an undergraduate at Stanford and then attended Stanford School of Medicine. After graduating in 2012, he started his residency in internal medicine at Stanford, where he was exposed to the inpatient oncology ward. This experience motivated him to specialize in oncology, and he spent four years following his residency as a hematology/oncology fellow with Heather Wakelee, MD, who concentrates on lung cancer treatment.

“Once he started his fellowship, he really distinguished himself in his humanism. He’s just so caring and thoughtful, and has an incredible depth of medical knowledge,” says Wakelee.

For the past two years, Myall has been a clinical assistant professor at the Stanford Cancer Institute, where he focuses on non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)—one of the two major types of lung cancer that make up about 85% of all cases.

“I knew I wanted to be in an area of medicine where I could really have strong relationships with my patients,” Myall says. “There’s that relational aspect where you really have to walk alongside your patients and get to know them as individuals—what their goals are, who they are as people. That really informs how they approach their treatment.”

“Dr. Myall did extra work during his fellowship to learn how to be a clinical investigator,” Wakelee says. “He has kept his work as a clinical investigator an important priority now on top of shouldering a lot of clinical responsibilities as an attending physician. But he never complains; he keeps going. He’s an amazing team player.”

Myall admits that, as a newer attending physician, he is still trying to figure out the best way to balance his research with his clinical duties. He notes that he is lucky to have a team filled with amazing physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurse coordinators who help to lighten his load. “I’m fortunate to have a great support group in the clinic,” he says. “That makes a huge difference.”

Informed Treatment

At the end of the day, Myall’s main goal with his research is to better serve his patients. “I try to tie all my work together. The research informs what I’m doing in clinic. It helps to look at it that way: It’s all interconnected,” he explains.

There are still plenty of knowledge gaps in the field of NSCLC, and the more that doctors know, the better informed the recommendations and treatments for their patients are, Myall notes.

Wakelee sees that Myall’s personal experience in the medical system has given him deeper insight into what it means to be a patient, thereby allowing him to be a more attentive and knowledgeable doctor. But, at the same time, she says, “he would be this way regardless of his background. He is just a warm, caring, and brilliant person.”