Harvard Dermatology Fall 2017 Alumni Newsletter

Harvard Dermatology

Alumni News

News for graduates and friends of the Harvard Combined Dermatology Program | Fall 2017

Inside: Alum Spotlight - Page 2 | resident updates - Page 3 | recent events - Page 4

Meet the New Harvard Dermatology First Year Residents!

Sameer Gupta was born and raised in Macon, Ga. He majored in anthropology at Yale College, then spent a year at the University of Cambridge completing a master’s program in translational medicine as a Churchill Scholar. As a medical student at Harvard Medical School, he became fascinated by the intersection of genomics and dermatology. Sameer is interested in cutaneous genomics and oncology and the application of novel technologies to improve patient care. In his free time, he enjoys sailing, cycling, and podcasts.

Christina Weng is from a small town in the Appalachian foothills of North Carolina. She went to college at the California Institute of Technology, where she worked on melanoma immunotherapy, and then attended Harvard Medical School with a research year at MGH to work on melanoma epigenetics. Christina is interested in basic and translational research, as well as opportunities to improve healthcare utilization. She enjoys sailing and indulging her corgi puppy Charlie.

Left to Right: Yun, Sameer, Neera, Tiffany, Christina, Romi, Sherry, Melissa, Tyler, Scott Romi Bloom was born in Cape Town, South Africa and moved to the suburbs of Chicago in 1999.

She attended the 7 year BS/MD Honors Program in Medicine at the University of Miami in Florida.

Romi's clinical interests include innovative biologic therapeutics, laser treatments, rosacea, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and integrating technological advancements into dermatology. Her research interests include psoriasis, cutaneous immunology, and skin cancer epidemiology. Romi enjoys exploring new cities, hiking, and spending time with friends and family.

Yun Xue grew up in New Jersey. She fell in love with Boston while studying cognitive sciences at MIT and is coming up on a decade of calling Beantown home.

She became interested in merkel cell carcinoma and inpatient consult dermatology while attending Harvard Medical School and hopes to become a clinician educator someday. She is always up for spontaneous trips to new restaurants, hiking trails, and good karaoke with good company.

Sherry Yu grew up in Naperville, IL. After high school, she entered the combined BS/MD program at Case Western Reserve University where she majored in Biology and Economics. She took a research year during medical school to study vascular inflammation in psoriasis patients and allergic contact dermatitis in African American patients. Her dermatology interests include dermatoepidemiology, Mohs surgery and Scott Elman grew up in Livingston, New Jersey. He attended Washington University in St. Louis medical education. In her free time, she enjoys where he studied biochemistry, psychology and Spanish. After graduating, he spent a year working traveling, trying new foods, and watching college as a teacher before attending Harvard Medical School. Scott is interested in the intersection of football. dermatology with internal medicine, specifically rheum-derm. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking Tyler Menge grew up on a cattle ranch in northwest and exploring restaurants with his significant other, Joanna.

Colorado. He attended CU Boulder and received his Tiffany Sun grew up in St. Louis, MO. She attended Cornell University for undergrad and majored bachelor’s degree in Molecular & Cell Biology. He in Biology and Society. She then studied immune responses to malaria for her PhD at Yale spent two years in translational research in stem cell University. She went back to the midwest for medical school at Northwestern University. Her biology and therapeutics before attending the interests in dermatology include cutaneous oncology and immunology as well as community and University of Michigan Medical School, where he global access to dermatologic care. In her free time, she enjoys road biking, hiking, and traveling. worked with Dr. Anthony Rossi at MSK Cancer Center on confocal microscopy in melanoma. He continues to Neera Nathan was born and raised in Frederick, Maryland. She completed the Seven-Year be interested in melanoma and technology in Integrated BA/MD program at the George Washington University and a two-year research dermatology, as well as health outcomes and policy. fellowship at the NIH in genetic skin disease. Neera’s interests include inpatient dermatology, Tyler enjoys running, cooking (and eating!), and pediatric dermatology and procedural dermatology. In her free time, she loves to cook and travel spending time with his wife and their two poodles. with her significant other, Bogdan.

Melissa Danesh grew up in Los Angeles, CA. She majored in anthropology and human biology at Emory University and went to the University of California San Francisco for medical school. She spent a year during medical school conducting clinical trials in biologic agents for the treatment of psoriasis. Her interests include medical dermatology, and the intersection between women’s health and dermatology. In her free time she enjoys hiking, cooking, and traveling with her husband, William.

Alum Spotlight:

Dr. April Armstrong Can you share some of your fondest memories from your Harvard Derm residency training?

The faculty and co-residents made my residency experience unforgettable.

My fondest memories include spending time with Dr. Charlie Taylor at his Charlestown clinic. Dr. Taylor made the clinic experience decisively fun, and I often laughed throughout the afternoon thanks to his great sense of humor. In my continuity clinic at Chestnut Hill with Dr. Rachel Reynolds, she would patiently explain to me everything from dermoscopic features of lentigo maligna to how laser hair removal worked.

I also remember rounding with Dr. Harley Haynes at the West Roxbury VA on Friday late afternoons, where he would round meticulously on each patient with a large team of trainees from Harvard, BU and Tufts. A few times, he took all the trainees out to a local pub and ordered us “black and tan.” If anyone asked, “What’s black and tan, Dr. Haynes?” That query would automatically land that person a glass to enjoy.

Please don’t be fooled into thinking that all my fondest memories come from non-academic pursuits. When I was a first-year dermatology resident, one of the most nerve-wracking moments happened during the first grand rounds of the year. DJ was moderating the rounds and asked a question to which I had no idea what the answer would be. I ducked my head down as low as possible in order not to be called on, only to hear “April, what do you think?” from the podium. While I can’t remember how I responded to placate the academic curiosity of my attendings, I remember the rush of adrenaline meshed with fear and a twinge of embarrassment. After grand rounds, I asked DJ, “Dr. Johnson, why did you call on me?” He said, “April, I always call on residents who look down to avoid being called.” I learned two lessons that day—always read and be prepared, and if I’m not, look dispassionately forward when DJ is moderating grand rounds.

What has been your career path since leaving Harvard?

After graduating from residency, I joined faculty at University of California Davis. There, I applied what I had learned in teledermatology from Dr. Kvedar to expanding the teledermatology services in Northern California. I directed both live, interactive and store-and-forward teledermatology program at UC Davis. In addition, I oversaw the Clinical Research Unit and conducted clinical trials in inflammatory skin diseases including psoriasis, AD, and hidradenitis suppurativa. With chair Dr. Liu’s support and mentorship, I received a Dermatology Foundation CDA, CTSI K12, and then a federal K08. After nearly six years at UC Davis, I was recruited to University of Colorado Denver by Dr. Norris, where I headed the Clinical Trials and Outcomes Research Unit and expanded the psoriasis program. While in Colorado, I also continued to hone my skills in outcomes research and received funding from PCORI to conduct a pragmatic trial in enhancing healthcare delivery for psoriasis patients.

In 2015, I was recruited to University of Southern California by Dr. David Peng, where I currently serve as Associate Dean for Clinical Research for Keck School of Medicine, Director of Clinical Research Support at the Southern California CTSI, and Vice Chair at the Department of Dermatology.

Please tell us more about your leadership and research efforts.

My research efforts after residency have their roots in the projects that I had worked on during residency. I am a firm believer of evidence-based medicine. I’m interested in determining how novel therapies may reduce the burden of skin diseases and how specialist healthcare can be delivered to patients more effectively and efficiently.

Specifically, my research team has focused on studying chronic inflammatory skin diseases, including but not limited to psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and hidradenitis suppurativa.

Examples of scientific areas that our research team has explored include (1) evaluating technology-enabled healthcare delivery models to increase access to dermatological care, (2) investigating comorbidities associated with chronic inflammatory skin diseases, especially psoriasis, and (3) exploring effective interventions to reduce atopic dermatitis disease burden.

My leadership efforts at the University of Southern California include expanding the clinical research infrastructure for Keck School of Medicine, ensuring rigorous conduct of investigator-initiated studies, and providing clinical research support to investigators interested in developing their own clinical research programs. In the Department of Dermatology, I work with other faculty on furthering their research interests, engaging residents and medical students in research projects, and teaching clinical research methodology.

Tell us more about your family!

I live with my loving husband and our 1-year old son in Los Angeles. We enjoy traveling, going to farmer’s markets, visiting craft breweries, and spending time with other family members.