Penn Medicine Physician Interviews

Head and neck reconstructive surgeon Karthik Rajasekaran, MD, and radiation oncologist Michelle Gentile, MD, review recent clinical investigations of intensity-modulated radiation therapy and proton therapy for deintensification of HPV+ head and neck cancers, and discuss the advantages of head and neck cancer therapy at Penn Medicine. (Part 2 of 2)

Leukemia specialist Matthew Connor addresses parsing the genomic determinants of the leukemias for diagnosis, and reviews the mystery of mixed phenotype acute leukemia, a rare type of acute leukemia that expresses phenotypic markers of both AML and ALL.  Learn more about Matthew Connor, MD  

Dr. John Plastaras offers the insight of a clinician researcher to an engaging discussion of the emergence and application of low-dose radiation therapy as a non-invasive, non-pharmacologic alternative for chronic and refractory osteoarthritis in individuals seeking relief from chronic joint pain when other treatments fail.  Learn more about Logan Barnes, PA-C   Learn more about John Plastaras, MD...

Head and neck reconstructive surgeon Karthik Rajasekaran, MD, and radiation oncologist Michelle Gentile, MD, discuss the nuances and benefits of deintensification, a personalized approach to care for individuals with HPV-positive head and neck cancers that aims to maintain high cure rates while reducing long-term toxicities. (Part 1 of 2)

Neurosurgeon Christina Jackson, MD, and radiation-oncologist Emily Lebow, MD, discuss the treatment of meningiomas, tumors of the meninges renowned for their tendency to recur following resection, and review the tools used to image (DOTATATE-PET), target (Lutathera), and destroy (GammaTile) residual meningioma cells to prevent recurrence of the disease.

Neurosurgeon Christina Jackson, MD, and radiation-oncologist Emily Lebow, MD, offer their unique perspectives on recent advances in the surgical and radiotherapeutic management of meningioma, complicated, often recurrent tumors that rise in the meninges of the brain and spinal cord.  Learn more about Emily Lebow, MD  

Clinician-researcher Ravi K. Amaravadi, MD, recalls a time within recent memory when no therapies existed for Stage IV metastatic melanoma, and reflects upon the 17 FDA-approved therapies now available to treat the disease. In this podcast, Dr. Amaravadi notes that many of these agents— including molecularly targeted therapy, immunotherapy in solid tumors, TIL cellular therapy, and personalized mR...

Penn radiation oncologist Alexander Lin, MD, reviews the groundbreaking clinical study that established the equivalency of proton therapy to photon radiation (IMRT) as an adjunct for patients with HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer—finding in so doing that proton therapy can be used for deintensification of radiation treatment in this population. The study determined that proton therapy matched photon ther...

Dr. Kimberly Stevenson offers an orthopaedic surgeon’s perspective on the muscle-sparing direct anterior approach (DAA) to total hip arthroscopy. DAA may bring about a faster recovery than the classic posterior and lateral approaches and has the potential for a lower risk of dislocation. Learn more about Kimberly Stevenson, MD  

Hematologist-oncologist Colin Thomas, MD, and dermopathologist Jina Chung, MD, review the diagnosis and treatment of the T cell lymphomas, including  the nodal and extra nodal (cutaneous) variants, describe the journey from diagnosis to treatment for T cell lymphoma patients, clinical research ongoing and the coordinated effort at Penn Medicine and the Abramson Cancer Center to control these rare,...

In an illuminating discussion, gynecologic oncologist Noah Goldman, MD, discusses the comprehensive scope of his practice at Penn Medicine Princeton Health, including the types of cancers he treats, and expands upon the known benefit of the HPV vaccine, the mysteries of screening for endometrial and ovarian cancers, and the promise of being attentive to one’s own body when things seem awry.  Learn...

Drs Sunil Singhal, Janos Tanyi, and James Delikatny discuss the 10 year anniversary of the Penn Center for Precision Surgery. A collaborative effort, the Center has the goal of advancing the practice and invention of intraoperative molecular imaging modalities. Together, the panel review the development and application of fluorescent contrast agents in surgery, relevant FDA-approvals originating a...

Drs Nadia Dawn Ali and Scott Peslak examine the pathology of sickle cell disease, its variable effects, and recent advances in treatment, including stem cell therapies and other new FDA-approved regimens for the disease.

Melanie Freas, DNP, CRNP, and cardiac surgery MSN, CRNP Katelyn Rosemann offer a comprehensive overview of the management of acute and chronic types A & B aortic dissection, with a consideration of long-term follow-up, the current status of genetic testing for aortic dissection risk, and the psychological effects of dissection survivorship. Learn more about Melanie Freas, DNP, CRNP   Learn mor...

Dr. Melina Marmarelis offers an overview of biomarker testing—and particularly liquid biopsy—as a fulcrum of precision medicine at Penn Medicine in the determination of tailored treatments for patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer.

Surgeons Christina Jackson, César Briceño, and Jennifer Douglas of Penn Neurosurgery, Oculoplastics, and ENT discuss their combined roles in the transorbital approach (TOA) to tumors of the skull base. The TOA reaches meningiomas and other deep-seated tumors through the orbit of the eye to avoid craniotomy and its after-effects.

Penn Orthopaedics surgeon Charles Nelson, MD, reflects on his role as recently elected President of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, as well as the organization’s history, its role in the development of orthopaedic surgeons, and the looming challenges of AI.  Learn more about Charles L. Nelson, MD  

Abdominal wall hernias appear at points of congenital or acquired weakness in the abdominal muscle wall, and their correction involves an understanding of both the nature of the precipitating flaw and the character of the abdominal wall. In this podcast, Lancaster-based surgeon Kelly Janke, DO, discusses these elements in the context of advanced hernia surgery. and reviews the factors that predisp...

Lisa Dobruskin., MD, reviews the management of obesity at Penn Princeton Bariatrics with a focus on continuity of patient-oriented care and the pathophysiology of weight gain and loss. Dr. Dobruskin reviews current minimally invasive surgical offerings, offers guidance on weight-loss medications, and discusses the timing of intervention and other concerns for those considering bariatric surgery.

For more than two decades, advanced practice providers at the Penn Surveillance Clinic have monitored and counseled patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) disease. A congenital disorder, BAV is associated with the connective tissue syndromes and in these and other affected populations is a leading cause of irreversible aortic root dilation, aneurysm, rupture, and dissection. Affiliated with the...

Obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Sarita Sonalkar provides an insightful review of the Penn Pregnancy Early Access Center, or PEACE Program, an integrated family planning and urgent pregnancy care center. In her engaging discussion, Dr. Sonalkar highlights the various benefits and services of the Program, including shared decision-making, timely appointments, contraception, counseling, ultrasound and...

Aortic aneurysms contribute to thousands of aortic dissections and ruptures every year in the United States, and are virtually undetectable in the general population. In this podcast, cardiac surgeon Jeremy McGarvey, MD, describes the effort to detect aortic aneurysms and their multidisciplinary management at PennMedicine.  Learn more about Jeremy McGarvey, MD

Drs Timothy Markman and Keith Cengel review the devices, medications and surgical approaches to ventricular tachycardia (VT), an arrhythmia linked to sudden death, our current understanding of the origins of VT, and clinical research into new approaches at Penn, including RADIATE VT, which compares radioablation to radiofrequency for VT ablation.

Is there a surgical answer to intractable hypertension? Drs. Taisei Kobayashi and Debra Cohen offer their clinical insights (surgery and nephrology, respectively) on catheter-based renal denervation and its indications for patients with refractory hypertension, as well as supporting evidence for efficacy and precautions for eligibility.

The second most common hematologic malignancy, multiple myeloma has an incidence of ~35,000 new cases a year in the United States. In this episode, Drs. Adam Cohen and Shivani Kapur convene to lay out a roadmap for the treatment journey for patients with the disease, from early treatment options, particularly autologous transplant, to recent advances in immunotherapy, combination maintenance thera...