BERKELEY -- Every flip and lap in the pool makes Maya Merhige a little stronger. It's a lot warmer in here, than when she plunges into the frigid waters of the Bay and beyond. 'It's just skin so I really get to feel all of it,' said Merhige. The 16-year-old from Berkeley is breaking records in open water swimming. You can't come out of the water during swims that can span hours, and sometimes even days. 'I feel the most alive when I'm in that water.
From the Golden Gate Bridge, swimming around Manhattan in New York City, and from island to island in the warmer waters of Hawaii, Maya's efforts are helping cancer researchers.'Swim Across America has allowed me to retain a course of staff about four scientists,' said Dr. Julie Saba, a pediatric cancer physician at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital. Saba is targeting new therapies and studying a particular cancer gene commonly discovered in children.