Javad Paydar, between reason and feelings, on childhood, family, career. A unique path on unpredictable roads. About beauty, unknown and unforgettable to a meaningful, balanced, happy life.

Photo Credit: Javad’s Personal Archives: IRIC, UdeM, Montreal, April 2021

Who are you, Javad Paydar?

I am a PhD candidate in systems biology at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC), University of Montreal and, since 2019, working as a Teaching Assistant.

I came from Shiraz, Iran. I had a long trip… I went to Malaysia for my Master’s studies and started working as a researcher in cancer field for a couple of years there. I started in Biology and I got interested in Biotechnology from the articles I was reading during the last year of my Bachelor. I went to Malaysia for a Master’s degree in Biotechnology, which went pretty well and I successfully developed a novel molecular detection technique and could publish my work in two prestigious journals. I started working as a Research Assistant at the same university where I did my Master’s studies and I had the chance to work with a very passionate group, researchers gathering together from different parts of the world, Japan, Singapore, UK, Australia for two years. I would say that those two years of hard work shaped my knowledge and skills. I was not very experimented at that time, but I could propose new avenues in Research. That research project that I proposed and initiated is still ongoing and I am very proud of it. But I chose to come to Montreal to pursue my career.

Why did you choose Canada?

Here, you are more exposed to the high ranked research in the world, so you have the chance to meet, to learn and collaborate with the best researchers in the world. And, as I want to pursue my career in Research, I found this the best way to chase my dream.

Why Cancer Research?

My discussions with my uncle during High School ignited the first curiosity. He is an oncologist and he was talking to me a lot about his patients and their difficulties. The rate of cancer patients is high everywhere and Iran is not an exception. I had people in the family that lost their lives to cancer. So I was interested to find out more about aggressive types of cancer that progress fast and don’t respond to chemo efficiently. Since high school I was following articles to understand what is being done in research to tackle these issues. I found subjects that interested me more and I read more and more. During my Bachelor’s studies and even in the duration of my final exams, which was a tough study time, I was more concentrated on reading articles than for my exams. I was self-studying physiological pathways and fundamental actions of chemotherapeutics which might sound boring, but I liked to go deeper and deeper in that direction.

What was the most important thing that drove you to this decision?

I had a difficult childhood; as a teenager, I grew up after the war in Iran. When I was in primary school, even during High School, there were still difficult times in my family, financially and socially.

But I wanted to achieve something, so I had to work hard on the goals I had in mind.

In Iran, parents encourage their children to become either an engineer or a doctor. So, that was already on my plate since I was born and in fact I got accepted to go to a Med School, but I changed my mind and chose science. A decision that I regret from time to time, as I see that I could have an easier life and a more promising job. But there are also times when I’m happy about it, because I truly enjoy what I am doing right now. I do enjoy spending hours and hours in the lab doing experiments or reading/writing articles. So I’m not wrong if I say that it was a choice of passion. I might sound like a workaholic, which I am not.

Have you ever thought about changing your career?

There were doubts coming along about what I really want in life. So yes, at some points, I was thinking of becoming a musician or an artist. I was good in Arts, in Painting, in Writing. I was always participating in small competitions in Painting and Literature. But as a career, we didn’t have much potential in Iran at that time. And later on I didn’t really do it because I put this much effort in what I am doing now.

But life is not one dimension.

I really want to do something with my other passions, so I do not give up on them. I still love music, but unfortunately, I do not have much time for it right now (smile). I am still drawing and have participated in a few exhibitions since my bachelor’s studies. I enjoy drawing portraits of people and animals. Whenever I am free for a while, I start drawing or sketching.

What do you consider as the most important thing that keeps you on the path you chose?

As a researcher, I want to make a difference, even a tiny one, in cancer research. I want to be a small part of the developments in the field. I saw a lot of suffering of cancer, so I am very touched. But we can improve the quality of life; we can make some improvements in the life style of the patients and also in the treatments. As researchers, we know that it is possible, even it’s very hard to believe, but there are improvements that can be done, so everyone is working and little by little we can work on finding solutions.

Do you consider yourself as a balanced person?

I guess so. I try to keep the balance as much as possible with sports, food, hobbies and work. However, sometimes I just lose it either way.

Photo Credit: Javad’s Personal Archives: Rivière-à-Claude, Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, July 2021

I enjoy hiking and a lot of other outdoor activities with my fiancée. Spending some time in nature, smelling the fresh air and disconnecting from the news and social networks help you find your true self.

What are your reasons to practicing sports?

I actually have a lot of energy and when I stop doing sports, I start to feel stressed, so, doing sports helps me to release my energy. You know life is stressful, you have to keep your body and your mind healthy. You need hobbies in life. It is important to keep the child inside you alive. Mine enjoys a movie with my favorite meal, a song with maybe a little bit of dance. If I don’t have these besides the crazy hectic pace of life, I would definitely miss something. Life is about all these together. You cannot give up on them. Besides all sophisticated stuff you do in life, you should still enjoy a movie you’re watching or the food you’re eating. If you don’t enjoy it anymore, there is something wrong in your life.

You experienced it in your own life…

Yes and I had to find out why. I took time to think about it. It was hard to find the reason and the solution. I had to go away from the things that caused negative feelings and thoughts. I tried to focus on other things and after a few weeks, months, I started to feel better. I kind of isolated myself for a while until I found my true self back.

What would be a happy life for you, in a few words?

A happy life would be… if you imagine… a working day, not a week-end, when you get up and you open your eyes, you are still happy to continue your day, to go to work, you are happy that you work where you work. Then, at the end of the day, when you finish working, again, you are happy that you get back home with the people you love and to do stuff you like.

Happy to go to work from home and then happy to go home from work.

So, I think those two moments, in the morning and in the evening define our true happiness in life.

Building something with a social impact is important to you?

Mainly, we try to have an impact on the society, to do something that other people would appreciate, this is important, but we are also selfish and we want to build something which is recognized as your own thing. This would satisfy your sense of responsibility as a scientist, while quenching your thirst of making a name. I constantly think about both impacts, to be honest. Working for the others and having their recognition.

In the end, we are all working to serve each other.

Have you met people that influenced your decisions at some point in your life?

Of course! A lot of people actually, with positive and negative impacts. I worked with a lot of scientists from whom I learned a lot and I would say that they influenced the scientific path I took.

Photo Credit: Javad’s Personal Archives: With Dr. David Hipfner, at IRCM, Montreal, May 2018

Is there something that you would say to your younger self now?

I would say a lot of things. There were wrong decisions on the way that made me suffer. Or there were joys that faded in the process of a rush into growing up.

Or maybe I should let my younger self make the same mistakes, because that’s life.

And to a teenager trying to figure out the road to a good professional choice?

Life is a unique opportunity that doesn’t have a sequel. Do something with it that gives you pleasure, pride and satisfaction. And never give up even if you make a mistake.

The Beauty?

To love and to be loved.

The Unknown?

Although the unknown always triggers some kind of fear, I tend to embrace it, because I believe that going into the unknown could expand what is known.