PGY1 – PGY2 Research Program
In order to jump start residents' research experience, our general surgery residency program has built in a research rotation into both the first and second years. Residents will find clinical projects and a faculty member to aid them in the process. This also functions as time for residents to start planning out their research years, which begin after their third clinical year.
Our current residents are working on the following research projects:
Ali Althans
Ali Althans is spending her academic time developing her interests in clinical outcomes research and surgical education. She is completing the Pitt ICRE's Masters of Science in Clinical Research, with a focus on Clinical Trials. She has also been accepted into the Association for Surgical Education's Surgical Education Research Fellowship (SERF), wherein she has the opportunity to develop skills in education research under the guidance of national leaders in the field. Current works include projects investigating the role of holistic review in improving diversity in graduate medical education, and evaluating barriers to providing feedback to medical students on the surgery clerkship under the mentorship of recent program graduate Dr. Sara Myers. She is also working with Drs. Holder-Murray and Tessler in the colorectal surgery department to complete various clinical outcomes, health services, and clinical trial projects. She plans to pursue a fellowship in colorectal surgery after completing general surgery residency.
Vincent Anto
Vincent Anto is spending his research years in the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine under the mentorship of Dr. Stephen Badylak. His translational research focuses on small animal models of colorectal procedures and disease states. He is currently investigating the application of extracellular matrix products to reduce rates of rectal anastomotic leaks and for the healing of anorectal fistulas. His basic science projects evaluate the mechanisms involved in anastomotic leaks as well as the characterization of matrix-bound nanovesicles found in the gastrointestinal system. Through the Department of Colorectal Surgery, he is studying rectal cancer outcomes and participates in planning early clinical studies for novel anorectal fistula devices.
Yeahwa Hong
Yeahwa Hong is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University under the guidance of Dr. Keith Cook. His primary research focus is developing a durable ambulatory respiratory assist system for patients with advanced lung disease. He is also interested in novel selective anticoagulants and surface modification in mechanical circulatory support device applications. In addition to conducting translational science projects, he is also working with Dr. David Kaczorowski focusing on cardiac transplantation and cardiogenic shock research.
Thiagarajan Meyyappan
Thiagarajan Meyyappan is working with Steven Little on applying chemical engineering solutions to improving post-operative wound healing. Specifically, he is working on using biodegradable polymers to preventing post-operative adhesion formation, incisional hernias, and anastomotic leaks.
Anna Ramos
Anna Ramos is currently working with Dr. Kevin Mollen at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. She is studying mitochondrial dynamics in the intestinal epithelium in the setting of inflammation in humans and mice, focusing on the opposing but coordinated processes that control mitochondrial turnover: biogenesis and mitophagy. With a deeper understanding of these mechanisms, she hopes to develop novel therapeutic adjuncts that restore intestinal epithelial energy homeostasis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.
Lauren Rosenblum
Lauren Rosenblum is working with Dr. Marcus Malek and Dr. Gary Kohanbash. She is optimizing and investigating the use of a novel intraoperative molecular imaging (IMI) agent to aid in the resection of neuroblastoma and osteosarcoma by highlighting malignant tissue during surgery. She is also working to translate the use of this agent into early-stage clinical trials.
Andrew Sayce
Andrew Sayce is currently working with Drs. Timothy Billiar and Matthew Rosengart. He is interested in understanding the role of the unfolded protein response (UPR) in critical illness resulting from traumatic injury and sepsis. He is focused on understanding the complex dynamics of UPR signaling using human clinical -omics level data as well as in vitro and murine experimental models. His work fosters international collaboration with partners at the University of Oxford, Department of Biochemistry to understand the basic biology of critical illness with the aim of harnessing this knowledge for intervention in the acutely ill patient.
David Silver
David Silver is currently spending his academic development time under the mentorship of Dr. Joshua Brown in the PRODCTS Lab. He is interested in health services research and is exploring right-sizing care in the acute care surgery population, from the prehospital setting to discharge. In addition to HSR, he is completing his Masters of Clinical Research at the Institute for Clinical Research Education.
Tamara Byrd
Tamara Byrd is passionate about studying issues of health inequity. She is focusing her academic development time to conduct research in health disparities and equity, specifically in trauma and emergency general surgery. She is pursuing a Master of Public Health with a focus in health equity. She is being supported by a multidisciplinary mentorship team including Dr. Matthew Neal and Dr. Joshua Brown. Her current projects include reviewing disparities in emergency colorectal surgery, investigating disparities in demographic enrollment in trauma clinical trials, and understanding the impact of social determinants of health and proximity to trauma center and mortality.
Rebecca Kotcher
Rebecca Kotcher is using her research time to pursue interests in clinical trials and gastrointestinal disease. Her current work involves chronotherapy, or the optimization of circadian function in order to improve treatment response and/or minimize toxicity. Under the guidance of Dr. Matthew Rosengart and Dr. Matthew Neal, she is developing a clinical trial of blue light therapy in patients undergoing medical and surgical treatments for rectal cancer. It is hypothesized that the intervention will not only improve response to neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy but also improve surgical candidacy with positive effects on sleep quality, pain control, and overall quality of life. In addition to her research, Rebecca is pursuing the Master of Science in Clinical Research degree under the Clinical Trials track.
Sebastian Boland
Sebastian Boland is spending his academic time working under the mentorship of Dr. Joshua Brown in the PRODCTS lab while completing the Pitt ICRE's Master of Science in Clinical Research program, with a focus on Comparative Effectiveness. He is most interested in trauma systems with a focus on prehospital quality of care as well as the role of social determinants of health on trauma and acute care surgical patient outcomes.
Hannah Rinehardt
Hannah Rinehardt is interested in a career in Pediatric Surgical Oncology. She is dedicating her academic development time to becoming an expert in basic scientific research methods under the guidance of Dr. George Gittes at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh as a Post-Doctoral Research Scholar. She holds a University of Pittsburgh Physician-Scientist Institutional Award from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. She is currently studying novel surgical methods in animal models of diabetes mellitus and pancreatic tumors.