THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO MADE THE 2023 COURSE An Amazing SUCCESS!
This is the 38th year of the course, “Medical and Surgical Aspects of Esophageal and Foregut Disorders: Pathophysiology and Treatment” will be held at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort And Spa on the island of Maui.
COURSE OVERVIEW
For those that have not attended previously, the course is specifically designed to have the feel and interaction of a small-group classroom environment where questions, comments, and discussion are encouraged. The course is open to all physicians and allied health personnel with an interest in esophageal and foregut disorders. It is particularly appreciated by gastroenterologists and gastrointestinal surgeons who focus on the diagnosis and treatment of patients with esophageal disorders, and for those who have an interest in developing a swallowing center and who function as a team to collaboratively approach esophageal problems. The lectures are detailed and supported by existing literature and ongoing research to provide cutting-edge information that can be immediately applied to patient care. Each lecture is followed by ample time for often vigorous discussion and interaction between the faculty and attendees as areas of controversy are further explored and debated.
In addition, there are lunch and learn sessions that provide even deeper dives into relevant and often controversial subjects, an “Interactive New Technology” break-out session to provide participants with the opportunity to gain insight into new and evolving technologies that impact esophageal diagnostics and therapy, and optional Hands-on Certificate Sessions. In these sessions, participants have close interaction with faculty and vendors on new technology and procedures to enable the participant to leave with a new level of confidence and experience along with a certificate of completion at the end of the advanced session. These sessions typically include high-resolution motility, advanced endoscopic procedures, and novel diagnostic or therapeutic devices.
The course is intense, but we also encourage socialization among the participants and faculty. This is aided by a course reception Thursday night and a wonderful evening social event on Monday night. This year we are adding a poolside cocktail event for participants to interact with the faculty in a relaxed environment and hear stories from their careers, discuss cases, share thoughts on the future of foregut, and enjoy the beauty of Hawaii together poolside. The course starts Thursday and ends Tuesday, with Sunday a free day for everyone to unwind and recharge.
Agenda
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2
6:00 AM Continental breakfast/introductions and welcome (S. DeMeester & P. Katz)
SESSION 1: Esophageal diagnostics and GERD (Moderator: Steve DeMeester)
6:30 AM Current strategy for medical therapy in patients with GERD and BE (P. Katz)
7:15 AM Esophageal function throughout the GERD spectrum (S. DeMeester)
8:00 AM How do we define GERD? (P. Chandrasoma)
9:00 AM Quality of life in patients with GERD and BE (P. Lagergren)
10:00 AM Coffee break/case presentations
10:30 AM Modern concepts about GERD and EOE (S. Spechler)
11:30 AM PCABs: A game changer for severe GERD? (P. Katz)
12:15 PM Lunch and learn deep dive: The Barrett’s and cancer battle: winning, losing or draw?
US perspective (S. Spechler & J. Peters)
European perspective (R. Pouw & J. Lagergren)
1:35 PM Panel discussion
2:00 PM Break
2:30 PM Hands-on session:
Medtronic: High Resolution Esophageal Manometry Marking and Interpretation
4:30 PM Adjourn
5:30 PM Welcome reception - All participants
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3
6:00 AM Break-the-fast with science
SESSION 2: GERD and Barrett’s: (Moderator: Phil Katz)
7:00 AM How do we go from GERD to BE? (R. Souza)
8:00 AM GERD, BE, and adenocarcinoma: epidemiologic perspectives (J. Lagergren)
9:00 AM LINX, TIF, and Fundoplication in GERD and BE: How to choose and what to expect long term (B. Louie)
10:00 AM Extended coffee break/case presentations
10:45 AM Missed dysplasia and cancer during index endoscopy: scope of the problem (S. Wani)
11:45 AM EMR vs ESD in foregut cancer (F. Schnoll-Sussman)
12:30 PM Surveillance for BE: any good or all bad and ugly? (S. DeMeester)
1:15 PM Lunch
2:30 PM Hands-on session
Everything advanced endo: EMR, ESD, RFA, Cryoballoon, stents, clips
ESD/Bleeding Control, Prodi GI
4:30 PM Adjourn
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4
5:00 AM Continental breakfast
SESSION 3: BE and Adenocarcinoma I (Moderator: Stu Spechler)
6:00 AM Barrett’s Ablation rapid fire: (10 min each)
RFA (S. Wani)
Cryo (R. Pouw)
Ablation at the time of EMR (S. DeMeester)
Endpoint of endotherapy (D. Molena)
Risk factors for failure/poor outcome (F. Schnoll-Sussman)
Long-term GERD control after ablation (P. Katz)
What about squamous dysplasia? (S. DeMeester)
Management of recurrence (B. Louie)
7:30 AM Panel discussion/audience questions
8:00 AM Break out rooms
10:15 AM Coffee break/case presentations
SESSION 4: BE and Adenocarcinoma II (Moderator: Steve DeMeester)
10:45 AM Immunotherapy 101 (G. Vaccaro)
11:30 AM Challenges and outcomes with endotherapy: the Dutch experience (R. Pouw)
12:30 PM Detecting and treating recurrence after esophagectomy for cancer (Y. Janjigian)
1:15 PM Adjourn
4:30 PM Poolside cocktails with the faculty for fellows and young faculty
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5 - FREE DAY
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 6
6:00 AM Early risers video session
6:30 AM Continental breakfast/case presentations
SESSION 5: BE and Adenocarcinoma III (Moderator: Felice Schnoll-Sussman)
7:00 AM GERD, BE, and adenocarcinoma: global prevalence and epidemiologist’s perspective (J. Lagergran)
8:00 AM From BE to Adenocarcinoma (R. Souza)
8:45 AM Which patients with BE should be ablated: is there a role for biomarkers and gene expression In management? (S. Wani)
9:30 AM What can the resection specimen after neoadjuvant therapy tell us about prognosis? (B. Louie)
10:15 AM Coffee break/case presentations
SESSION 6: BE and Adenocarcinoma IV (Moderator: Steve DeMeester)
10:45 AM Surveillance after endotherapy: how and how long? (F. Schnoll-Sussman)
11:30 AM Who and what neoadjuvant therapy for esophageal cancer in 2023? (G. Vaccaro)
12:15 PM Esophageal microbiome: Do we need to pay more attention? (S. Spechler)
1:00 PM Adjourn
6:30 PM Course reception
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7
6:30 AM Continental breakfast/case presentations
SESSION 7: BE and Adenocarcinoma V (Moderator: Phil Katz)
7:00 AM Predicting mortality with esophagectomy and patient/procedure selection (D. Molena)
8:00 AM Biomarkers and response prediction in adenocarcinoma (Y. Janjigian)
8:45 AM Debate on management of T1b esophageal cancer
Surgery (D. Molena)
Endoscopic therapy (R. Pouw)
10:00 AM Coffee break/case presentations
10:30 AM Lasting symptoms, QOL, and life expectancy after esophagectomy (P. Lagergran)
11:15 AM Chromoendoscopy and AI in Barrett’s detection and surveillance (S. Wani)
12:00 PM Deep dive into risk prediction for BE progression: reality and implications (S. DeMeester)
12:45 PM Adjourn
Accreditation
Accreditation: This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of HCA Healthcare Continental Division and the Foregut Foundation. HCA Healthcare Continental Division is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Credit Designation: HCA Healthcare Continental Division designates this activity for a maximum of 28.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board, The American Nurses Credentialing Center, and The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) accept AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ issued by organizations accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) toward recertification requirements. *We suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
Commercial Support: This Activity was developed without support from any ineligible company. *The ACCME defines ineligible companies as those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. Note: The ACCME does not consider providers of clinical service directly to patients to be commercial interests – unless the provider of clinical services is owned, or controlled by, and ACCME defined ineligible company.
Disclosure: The HCA Healthcare Continental Division Office of CME (OCME) and its affiliates are committed to providing educational activities that are objective, balanced and as free of bias as possible. The OCME has established policies that disclose to the audience, verbally or in writing, any commercial relationships that might be perceived as a real or apparent conflict of interest related to the content of their presentations, and unlabeled/unapproved uses of drugs and devices. Detailed disclosures are made verbally and/or in writing during the program. The HCA Healthcare Continental Division is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME). In order to participate as a person who will be able to control the educational content of accredited CME activities, we ask that individuals disclose all financial relationships with any ineligible companies over the past 24 months. The ACCME defines ineligible companies as those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. There is no minimum financial threshold; we ask individuals to disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies. For more information on the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, please visit accme.org/standards. The ACCME considers financial relationships to create conflicts of interest in CME when individuals have both a financial relationship with ineligible companies and the opportunity to affect and influence the content of CME about the products or services of that ineligible company. The potential for maintaining or increasing the value of the financial relationship with the ineligible company creates an incentive to influence the content of the CME—an incentive to insert commercial bias. The ACCME has not set a minimum dollar amount for relationships to be considered relevant and does not use the term significant to describe financial relationships. Inherent in any amount is the incentive to maintain or increase the value of the relationship.
ABIM MOC RECOGNITION STATEMENT
Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 28.75 MOC points and patient safety MOC credit in the American Board of Internal Medicine’s (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit.
Why do we collect this information?
Since healthcare professionals serve as the trusted authorities when advising patients, they must protect their learning environment from industry influence to ensure they remain true to their ethical commitments. Many healthcare professionals have financial relationships with ineligible companies. By identifying and mitigating financial relationships, we work together to create a protected space to learn, teach, and engage in scientific discourse free from influence from organizations that may have an incentive to insert commercial bias into education. The HCA Healthcare Continental Division is committed to providing CME that is balanced, objective, and evidenced-based. In accordance with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education Standards for Integrity and Independence all parties involved in content development are required to disclose all conflicts of interest with ACCME defined ineligible companies. The HCA Healthcare Continental Division has identified, reviewed, and mitigated all conflicts of interest that speakers, authors, course directors, planners, peer reviewers, or relevant staff disclose prior to the delivery of any educational activity. The CME planning committee who are in a position to control the content of this CME Activity, have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.
DISCLOSURES
The HCA Healthcare Continental Division Office of CME (OCME) and its affiliates are committed to providing educational activities that are objective, balanced and as free of bias as possible. The OCME has established policies that disclose to the audience, verbally or in writing, any commercial relationships that might be perceived as a real or apparent conflict of interest related to the content of their presentations, and unlabeled/unapproved uses of drugs and devices. Detailed disclosures are made verbally and/or in writing during the program.
The HCA Healthcare Continental Division is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME). In order to participate as a person who will be able to control the educational content of accredited CME activities, we ask that individuals disclose all financial relationships with any ineligible companies over the past 24 months. The ACCME defines ineligible companies as those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. There is no minimum financial threshold; we ask individuals to disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies. For more information on the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, please visit accme.org/standards.
The ACCME considers financial relationships to create conflicts of interest in CME when individuals have both a financial relationship with ineligible companies and the opportunity to affect and influence the content of CME about the products or services of that ineligible company. The potential for maintaining or increasing the value of the financial relationship with the ineligible company creates an incentive to influence the content of the CME—an incentive to insert commercial bias. The ACCME has not set a minimum dollar amount for relationships to be considered relevant and does not use the term significant to describe financial relationships. Inherent in any amount is the incentive to maintain or increase the value of the relationship.
Why do we collect this information?
Since healthcare professionals serve as the trusted authorities when advising patients, they must protect their learning environment from industry influence to ensure they remain true to their ethical commitments. Many healthcare professionals have financial relationships with ineligible companies. By identifying and mitigating financial relationships, we work together to create a protected space to learn, teach, and engage in scientific discourse free from influence from organizations that may have an incentive to insert commercial bias into education.
Faculty Information
This year we are pleased to again bring together outstanding leaders in the field of Esophageal Disease as faculty. The faculty brings broad experience in benign and malignant esophageal disease and includes a mixture of gastroenterologists and surgeons from diverse locations to ensure a comprehensive, state-of-the-art, yet balanced approach to the diagnosis and management of patients with esophageal and foregut disorders.
The course was started by Drs Tom DeMeester and Don Castell. Tom DeMeester was Professor of Surgery and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at the University of Southern California. He is world-renown for his numerous contributions in the field of esophageal disease, including the development of the DeMeester score to assess esophageal acid exposure during pH testing. He remains a dynamic part of this annual course. Don Castell was Professor of Medicine and Director of Esophageal Function Laboratory at the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston SC. He was internationally renowned for his contributions to esophageal function testing as well as diagnosis and therapy for gastroesophageal reflux disease. Sadly, Don passed away in 2021 but he will be long remembered for his detailed lectures on esophageal physiology, quick mind and gregarious spirit while debating Tom and the other surgeons at the annual course. His legacy lives on with the spirited discussions that are a tradition at this course.
Currently, the course is co-directed by Steve DeMeester, MD and Philip Katz, MD. Steve DeMeester is Director of esophageal surgery within the division of thoracic surgery specializing in foregut disease and is currently at The Oregon Clinic in Portland, OR. Prior to moving to Portland, he was Professor of Surgery and Clinical Scholar at the University of Southern California. Philip Katz is a Gastroenterologist specializing in esophageal diagnostics and therapy and is a Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, NYC. Prior to moving to Cornell, Phil was Chief of Gastroenterogy and Nutrition at the Albert Einstein Medical Center, Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, PA. He is a past president of the American College of Gastroenterology.
Emeritus director Jeff Peters MD, and core faculty Stu Spechler MD, Felice Schnoll-Sussman MD, Para Chandrasoma MD, and Daniela Molena MD remain integral to the outstanding content and discussions each year at the course. Jeff Peters was Professor of Surgery and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at The University of Rochester, and then his most recent position was Chief Operating Officer for University Hospitals Healthcare System in Cleveland, OH. Stu Spechler is Chief, Division of Gastroenterology and Co-Director, Center for Esophageal Diseases at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas and Co-Director, Center for Esophageal Research at Baylor Scott & White Research Institute. Felice Schnoll-Sussman is Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director of the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health and Director of Endoscopy, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Weill Cornell Medicine. Para Chandrasoma, Professor of Pathology at USC-LAC, is one of the world’s leading experts in esophageal pathology. Daniela Molena is Professor of Surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Each faculty brings expertise and broad clinical experience on esophageal disorders.
In addition to the core faculty each year there are special surgical and medical guests, from national or international locations, to highlight the specific topics that are focused on at each year’s meeting. These topics include esophageal diagnostics, endoscopic imaging and interventions, the pathology of GERD and Barrett’s esophagus, esophageal motility abnormalities and diverticula, hiatal hernia, laryngopharyngeal reflux, medical, surgical, and endoscopic therapies for GERD and motility disorders, esophageal perforation and caustic injury, eosinophilic esophagitis, benign tumors of the esophagus and stomach, and the diagnosis, staging, and therapy for esophageal and gastric cancer.
FEATURED ON THE MEDICINE SIDE
Roos Pouw, MD, PhD
Deputy Head of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Amsterdam University Medical Centers
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Dr. Roos Pouw was born in 1982 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and was raised bi-lingual by her Dutch and German parents. After obtaining her degree in Medicine at the University of Utrecht and a research fellowship at Harvard Medical School in Boston, she started her career in gastroenterology with a PhD fellowship at the Academic Medical Centers, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. In 2011 she obtained her PhD-degree Cum Laude with her thesis entitled "Endoscopic eradication of Barrett's esophagus with early neoplasia". During her training as a gastroenterologist in Amsterdam at the former Academic Medical Center (AMC), she focused on endoscopic detection and treatment of early upper gastrointestinal neoplasia, under the mentorship of Prof. Jacques Bergman and Prof. Bas Weusten. After finishing her training in 2017, Dr. Pouw was appointed staff member at the Dept. of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, where she and Prof. Bergman run the esophageal research team offering a wide range of endoscopic treatments to patients with upper gastrointestinal neoplasia.
In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Pouw supervises a number of research lines on endoscopic management of early Barrett's neoplasia, and for this work, she received the UEG Rising Star award 2020. She also supervises a research line on endoscopic vacuum therapy for treatment of defects in the upper gastrointestinal tract.
Dr. Pouw is currently secretary of the Dutch Upper Cancer Group, national representative for United European Gastroenterology (UEG), task force leader for a number of guideline initiatives and curricula on esophageal neoplasia for the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE), and editorial (advisory) board member for the UEG Journal and Best Practice & Research: Clinical Gastroenterology.
Rhonda F. Souza, MD
Co-Director Center for Esophageal Diseases, Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas
Co-Director Center for Esophageal Research, Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas
Adjunct Professor of Medicine Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine
Dallas, Texas
Dr. Souza’s laboratory has focused primarily on disorders of the esophagus, especially GERD and its complications including Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma, and eosinophilic esophagitis. For the past 20 years, she has worked closely with her scientific partner, Dr. Stuart Spechler, to establish a translational research center that incorporates cell culture models, animal models, and in vivo patient studies to answer research questions regarding esophageal diseases. Their studies in rats and humans suggest that reflux esophagitis develops as a cytokine-mediated inflammatory injury, rather than a caustic chemical injury, challenging decades of dogma on the role of acid in reflux esophagitis. In addition, her team has uncovered that proton pump inhibitors have direct eosinophil-reducing effects, independent of effects on gastric acid production, providing a rationale for their use in the management of patients with eosinophilic esophagitis. Most recently her investigations into patients with achalasia and EGJOO revealed profound mast cell degranulation in lower esophageal muscle tissues from these patients suggesting that there may be an allergic form of this disorder.
Her truly translational approach to research in GERD and Barrett’s esophagus has allowed her to contribute to numerous publications on the clinical science of Barrett’s esophagus including co-authoring the AGA guidelines for management of Barrett’s esophagus and the new 2022 guidelines for the American College of Gastroenterology on the management of Barrett’s esophagus, in which her focus is on the role of biomarkers in predicting cancer progression. She is currently a multi-PI on an NIH-funded U01 trial entitled “A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial of Surveillance versus Endoscopic Therapy for Barrett’s Esophagus with Low-Grade Dysplasia: The SURVENT Trial”.
Dr. Souza has published more than 150 scientific reports, editorials, review articles, and book chapters on esophageal disorders. In 2010, she was elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation. Dr. Souza has served on the editorial boards of numerous journals including Gastroenterology, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, and JCI Insight, on NIH and VA study sections, and she has served as Chair of the Research Awards Panel of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) and Chair of the GI Oncology Section of AGA Council. She is presently Council Chair for the American Gastroenterological Association.
Sachin Wani, MD
Vice-Chair in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Medical Director of the Esophageal and Gastric Center
Co-Director of the GI Outcomes Research Group
Professor of Medicine
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Sachin Wani received his medical school training at the University of Mumbai – The Padmashree Dr. D. Y. Patil Medical College. He completed his GI fellowship at the University of Kansas followed by an advanced endoscopy fellowship at Washington University in Saint Louis.
His research has focused on various aspects related to Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma and has developed a successful track record of conducting epidemiologic studies that have defined the natural history of Barrett’s esophagus and related dysplasia. He has conducted studies that have established the effectiveness and safety of endoscopic eradication therapies, studies that have focused on improving the effectiveness of screening and surveillance practices along with improving the quality of endoscopy performed for this patient population. He has served as the primary or senior author for national GI society guidelines related to Barrett’s esophagus. His research has also addressed training in endoscopy and outcomes research in interventional endoscopy. He has authored greater than 250 publications in these areas. His research is funded by the National Institute of Health, multiple GI societies, the University of Colorado, industry, and private foundations. He is currently the principal investigator on multiple trials including the SURVENT trial funded by the NIDDK/NIH. He has served on several national committees and recently chaired the ASGE Standards of Practice committee and serves as the Vice-Chair for the AGA EGD Council. He has served as the Course Director for several conferences including the Rocky Mountain Interventional Endoscopy Course. Dr. Wani is committed to mentoring and has served as a mentor for many researchers, including medical students and residents, GI fellows, and junior faculty members. He serves as the co-PI of the University of Colorado T32 training grant.
FEATURED ON THE SURGICAL SIDE
Jesper Lagergren, MD, PhD
Professor of Surgery, Karolinska Institute in Sweden
Professor of Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer, King’s College London
Dr. Lagergren is an upper gastrointestinal surgeon and researcher from Sweden who focuses both clinically and academically on esophageal and gastric cancer and conditions associated with these tumors, including Barrett’s esophagus, gastroesophageal reflux disease, obesity and Helicobacter pylori infection. In addition to investigating possibilities for improvements in the treatment, especially surgical, he is also studying etiologic and preventive factors for esophageal and gastric cancer.
He completed his MD (1989) and PhD (1999) at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. After a residency in general surgery (1996) and sub-specialization in upper gastrointestinal surgery (1999) at various hospitals in Sweden, he became Consultant in Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery at Karolinska University Hospital (from 2000). In 2006, he was appointed a position as full Professor of Surgery at Karolinska Institute combined with a Consultant Surgery position at Karolinska University Hospital. In parallel, from 2010, he holds a part-time position as tenured Professor (Chair) at King's College London combined with an Honorary Consultant Surgeon position at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London.
Dr. Lagergren has thus far published approximately 450 peer-reviewed scientific articles (with the majority as principal investigator) and supervised 44 students to completed PhDs and 22 postdoctoral researchers. In 2017, he was elected as a member of the Nobel Assembly that awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Pernilla Lagergren, RN, PhD
Professor of Surgical Care Science, Karolinska Institute in Sweden
Professor of Surgical Care Science, Imperial College London
Professor Pernilla Lagergren is a full-time researcher from Sweden who focuses on esophageal cancer survivorship, including health-related quality of life and recovery after treatment. Factors influencing the cancer survivorship are studied as well as interventions counteracting deterioration in quality of life.
She was registered as a nurse in 1999 and completed her PhD in Surgery 2006 at Karolinska Institute. After her PhD she moved to Bristol University, United Kingdom, for a post-doc period after which she created her own research group at the Karolinska Institute. In 2011, she was appointed a position as full Professor of Surgical Care Science at the Karolinska Institute. In 2018 she was recruited by nomination as part-time chair (professor) in Surgical Care Science at Imperial College London, United Kingdom, where she chairs the Healthcare Professional Academic Group with more than 150 members. She presently holds these two professorships in parallel.
Professor Lagergren has published approximately 160 peer-reviewed scientific articles and supervised 10 students to completed PhDs and 9 postdoctoral researchers. She has been the recipient of several research prizes, e.g. the Nordic Anders Jahre’s research prize in medicine for young researchers. She is an elected member of the European Academy of Cancer Sciences where she is involved in the Academy’s work on cancer survivorship. She is a member of the scientific board of Sjöberg Foundation in Sweden.
Brian Louie, MD, FRCSC, FACS, MHA, MPH
Director of Thoracic Research and Education
Co-Director Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery Program
Executive Co-Medical Director and Surgical Chair, Digestive Health Institute
Swedish Cancer and Digestive Health Institutes
Seattle, Washington
Dr. Brian completed a Bachelor of Science in biology at the University of Western Ontario and a Master of Health Administration at the University of Ottawa. He went on to receive his MD from the University of Toronto in Canada. He trained in general surgery at the University of Alberta in Edmonton Canada during which he also completed a Master’s in Public Health in health technology evaluation. Following that, he went on to complete general thoracic surgery training at McMaster University in Hamilton Canada. After completing a clinical fellowship in thoracic and esophageal disease under the direction of Dr. Tom DeMeester at the University of Southern California, he joined the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Swedish Cancer Institute and Medical Center.
He holds certifications from the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada in general and thoracic surgery and from the American Board of Surgery in general surgery. His main interests are in esophageal cancer, treatment and pathophysiology of GERD, minimally invasive lung and mediastinal surgery particularly using the da Vinci robot, technology, and cost evaluation. He has authored 129 published articles and 15 book chapters.
Daniela Molena, MD
Director, Esophageal Surgery Program
Professor, Cardiothoracic Surgery
Weill Cornell Medical College
Associate Attending
Thoracic Service
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY
Dr. Daniela Molena is a graduate of the University of Padova Medical School in Italy. She completed residencies in general surgery both at the University of Padova and at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY. She completed a gastrointestinal research fellowship at the University of California in San Francisco and a cardiothoracic clinical fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) and Weill Cornell Medical College. She served as Chief of Thoracic Surgery at John Hopkins Bayview Medical Center where she developed a lung cancer multidisciplinary treatment and screening programs. She was recruited back to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in 2015 to serve as the Director of the Esophageal Program within the Thoracic Surgery Division. She strives to provide excellent and individualized care to patients, integrating new technology and novel approaches.
She is an advocate for the use of minimally invasive techniques (VATS, laparoscopic or robotic) whenever possible to decrease pain and enhance patient recovery.
Her research focuses on identifying and measuring quality indicators to improve clinical and functional outcomes after surgery, designing clinical pathways to decrease costs and improve results, and identifying racial and socioeconomic disparities that limit access to excellent care. She is also interested in developing and studying new technologies and imaging-guided approaches to direct surgical resection to be more precise, effective, and less invasive.
Dr. Molena has authored over 100 manuscripts and several book chapters. She is Deputy Editor of Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Editor of Diseases of the Esophagus and on the Editorial Board of Annals of Surgery, Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, and others. She is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the American Surgical Association, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, the Society for Surgeons of the Alimentary Tract, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, and the International Society for the Diseases of the Esophagus. She holds leadership positions in several of these surgical societies and she is Vice President of the society of Women in Thoracic Surgery.
Additional Featured Faculty for 2022: Medical Oncology
Yelena Y. Janjigian, MD
Associate Professor
Chief of Gastrointestinal (GI) Oncology Service
Department of Medicine
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York
Dr. Janjigian received her BS from the University of California, San Diego, and her MD from the New York University School of Medicine. She did her internal medicine residency at New York School of Medicine/Bellevue Hospital and her hematology/oncology fellowship training at MSKCC. She joined the MSK faculty in 2009 as a member of the GI Oncology Service.
Her research and clinical practice are focused on improving treatment outcomes for patients with GI malignancies. She is an international expert in the management of cancers of esophagus and stomach and led several seminal studies that changed practice and set the standard of care for these diseases. She produced high-impact publications describing the genomic basis for esophagogastric cancer pathogenesis and secured federal grants to fund future studies. Her research is focused on developing new treatments, with a special emphasis on defining the therapeutically relevant molecular characteristics of tumors in the GI tract, with 120 peer-reviewed publications to date.
Dr. Janjigian is an active member of American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) and European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) holding an array of leadership positions. As Chief of the GI Oncology Service, Dr. Janjigian’s mission is to foster research and innovation that transform the future of GI oncology to help patients worldwide.
Gina M. Vaccaro, MD
Providence Cancer Institute
GI Oncology Clinical Trials Leader
Portland, Oregon
Dr. Vaccaro received her BS from Tulane University and her MD degree from LSU School of Medicine in New Orleans. She did an internal medicine residency followed by a fellowship in Hematology and Oncology at Duke University, graduating in 2004. She started her academic career at Duke and subsequently moved to Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, OR in 2008. In 2019 she joined the Providence Cancer Center where she is the disease site leader for GI oncology clinical trials.
She is active in the design and implementation of GI cancer clinical trials and serves on the NCI esophagogastric task force. She is the PI of multiple ongoing and completed trials in GI oncology and continues to contribute to the peer-reviewed literature on these topics.