Game Changer: The Life Story of Michael Cheng-Yien Chen, Ph.D

Life for a young Taiwanese boy growing up in a Japanese-controlled country in the 1940s was not easy. He was certainly not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. At a vulnerable age of only four, he would lose his mother to a skin infection that in today’s world would have been easily treated with a trip to the doctor’s office. War, poverty, and the daily struggle to survive would set the stage for a real life Cinderella story complete with a harsh stepmother, a fairy godmother, and a beautiful princess who would transform his world.

This is the awe-inspiring life story of Dr. Michael Cheng-Yien Chen, a man who was able to endure the hardships of loss, poverty, and war to discover his gift of academic excellence, find his soulmate, and pursue the American dream. Dr. Chen’s work ethic comes from the poor environment he grew up in and from his experiences struggling to promote himself and his career. His American Dream starts from his campus life in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), and prospers on his career life in National Institutes of Health (NIH) - a world-class medical research institute where top doctors and researchers work together to improve human health.

The phrase ＂Game Changer＂ comes from a scientific experiment. If one experiment does not work, then redesign the experiment and do it again until the experiment works. The changes in the experiment are what ＂Changes the Game＂ so to speak. Just like the old Chinese proverb: ＂God will help a person who helps himself first!＂