当护理研究员Mei Fu博士使用威尼斯人娱乐城科学与工程学院的人体运动实验室时，这个小房间可以与她组建的令人印象深刻的研究团队紧密结合在一起。 作为研究副院长和威尼斯人娱乐城护理与健康研究学院的特聘教授，Fu带领科学与工程学院的六名教师和学生进行了她对癌症疼痛（也称为淋巴水肿）的开创性研究。
傅在运动实验室的日常工作是做一系列的练习，这样研究参与者就可以模仿她的动作，而科学与工程学院的两名学生则用手机记录下参与者的动作。 在幕后，机械工程副教授格雷格·金（Greg King）确保动作捕捉系统获得傅想要的所有数据。 研究参与者穿着一件特殊的夹克，在不同的身体标志上放置了反射标记。 该实验室使用的技术经常出现在电影或视频游戏制作的幕后镜头中，演员在绿色屏幕前移动。
根据King的说法，该实验室分析了锻炼的动作以及相应的肌电图数据，即测量肌肉功能的EMG数据。 与傅的合作让King感到充实。
“It’s always fun for me to work with researchers from other disciplines,” King said. “It broadens my horizons and is the most rewarding part of my work.”
傅花了20年的时间研究淋巴水肿，并试图为全世界数亿患有淋巴水肿和淋巴疾病的人找到答案，这些疾病是由体内液体积聚引起的疼痛肿胀。
1998年，她在密苏里州哥伦比亚市的埃利斯·菲舍尔癌症中心担任肿瘤护士时，就开始了对这项研究的热情。 当她的病人收到他们摆脱癌症的好消息时，她会和他们一起庆祝。 但是当谈到患有淋巴水肿的乳腺癌患者时，医生几乎没有什么建议。
“The oncologist would say to these women, ‘Remember, you survived cancer, you should be grateful,’” Fu said. “After the doctor would leave, my patient would say, ‘Mei, I wish there was something that could help with the pain I’m in.’”
淋巴水肿 can occur anywhere in the body, but it most commonly affects arms and legs. The lymph fluid that causes swelling is part of the lymph system, which helps the body’s ability to fight infection and disease. 癌症或癌症治疗会破坏淋巴液的流动，导致淋巴水肿，除了疼痛，还会导致胸闷、活动范围受损和皮肤变色和硬化等长期并发症。
In addition to King, Fu is also working Science and Engineering faculty Bowen Liu and Yugyung Lee, Ph.D. Liu as well as doctoral student Ahmed Alanazi and master’s student Abhinav Kochar. It’s an interdisciplinary collaboration that involves researchers from nursing science, computer science, engineering and statistics.
“It’s a huge team of people,” King said. “Now that we’ve got it running pretty smoothly, it’s fun.”
Fu于2023年从罗格斯大学（Rutgers University）来到威尼斯人娱乐城，当时她是该校护理学院的教授和高级副院长。 It’s that wealth of knowledge and experience that excites 威尼斯人娱乐城 Nursing and Health Studies Dean Joy Roberts, J.D., RN, FNP-BC. 罗伯茨说，自从傅加入威尼斯人娱乐城以来，该校的研究活动有所增加。
“Since Dr. Fu’s arrival, our faculty research and grant writing has increased dramatically,” Roberts said. “She encourages and inspires all nurses to delve into research for the betterment of science and our profession. We are very lucky to have her at 威尼斯人娱乐城.”
傅说，她在威尼斯人娱乐城的时间使她能够建立一个强大的团队，帮助她扩展和加强她的研究。 Fu现在的研究重点是建立一个多模式、人工智能（AI）辅助的训练工具，使患者能够学习作为干预一部分的练习。
Fu’s research is narrowing in on a standard of care that optimizes symptom management. Through her research, she’s developed an innovative intervention called The Optimal Lymph Flow, which focuses on activating the lymphatic system to promote lymph flow. 该计划强调三个组成部分：深呼吸、提供肌肉收缩的运动、健康饮食和高质量睡眠。
最佳的血流量锻炼来自她2003年在密苏里大学（University of Missouri）的博士论文研究，她在论文中采访了一些患者，以找出哪些干预措施有助于缓解他们的病情。 Since then, she’s performed six clinical trials that have shown the efficacy of The Optimal Lymph Flow intervention.
Being a participant in Mei’s research has been incredibly meaningful for Jeannine Midgett, a National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). 2013年，她接受了双侧乳房切除术，并于2014年进行了乳房重建。 在那段时间里，米吉特经历了很多治疗和痛苦。 现在她已经摆脱癌症10年了，但仍在忍受淋巴水肿带来的疼痛。 That is why being a participant in Fu’s research is so important to her.
“Being involved with this study means that I bring value,” Midgett said. “When you’re in pain, you have absolutely no control and you’re very reactive. It’s so important to be able to participate and have my voice heard, that there is someone like Mei trying to understand my pain while also offering some kind of change.”
对于计算机科学家Lee来说，这次合作扩大了她的研究能力，她正在帮助培训工具的人工智能方面。
“Collaborating with Mei has allowed us to push the boundaries of research and create technologies that have the potential to transform patient care,” Lee said. “It is exciting to see how these efforts bring together multiple disciplines to develop intelligent, impactful and accessible solutions.”
人工智能助手将引导患者完成推荐的练习。 为了收集人工智能功能的数据，Fu招募了参与者，既有淋巴水肿患者，也有健康的成年人，并在他们佩戴传感器的同时指导他们完成练习，这些传感器为她的团队提供数据，用于创建训练工具。
刘正在提供他在统计分析方面的专业知识，以帮助分析来自运动实验室的数据。 他将领导参与者数据的统计分析。 Once the app is in a prototype stage, he will also lead the feasibility and usability of it, under Fu’s guidance. 除此之外，他还将监督临床试验，以确定该系统的有效性。
“Working with a renowned healthcare researcher like Mei has been an incredible experience,” Liu said. “This project is deeply meaningful to me, especially as I think about my grandfather’s struggle with cancer. I am truly grateful for the chance to contribute to research that aims to develop interventions that not only alleviate pain and discomfort for cancer patients but also extend their lives.”