Penn Medicine Physician Interviews

Heritability has long been known to play a role in aortic aneurysm and dissection for individuals with the Marfan and Loeys-Dietz syndromes. Recent research at Penn Medicine and elsewhere has revealed the presence of genetic variants linked to these syndromes in non-syndromic disease. In this podcast, clinical genetics specialist Staci Kallish, DO, discusses this phenomenon, reviews ongoing studies to determine the risk for aortic aneurysm and dissection in the general population, and the protocols for candidates for genetic evaluation and testing in at- risk populations.

Electrocardiologist Matthew A. Bernabei, MD, examines the history of ablation for atrial fibrillation and its latest iteration, pulsed field ablation, or PFA. Now available at Penn Medicine, PFA uses an electrical field rather than radiofrequency or cryotherapy to treat the aberrant signals that are the source of Afib. Unlike other ablation modalities, PFA is cardio-selective, and thus poses little risk to structures near the heart, including the esophagus.Refer a patient:Call our 24/7 provider-only line at (877) 937-7366Submit via our secure online referral form

Cancer and surgery specialists Drs. Kara Maxwell, Daniel Lee, Jennifer Zhang, and Bryson Katona delve into the nuances of BRCA-positive breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancers in men. This wide-ranging discussion encompasses BRCA heritability, diagnostics, screening, risks, and treatment options.

Dr. Jonathan Nahas offers a concise overview of alcohol-related liver diseases, addressing their causes, consequences, and effects on the liver, and examines the importance of thorough assessment and management strategies, including liver transplantation.

Kendall Lawrence, MD, a specialist in aorta surgery, examines the physiology, symptomatology, types, and causes of acute aortic dissection and describes the management of these events at the Penn Aorta Center—including Center's direct-to-OR program for patients presenting with acute aortic emergencies.

Dr. Nawar Latif offers a nuanced overview of heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy, or HIPEC, as an adjunct to surgery in women with ovarian cancer. The introduction of heated chemotherapy at the peritoneum greatly increases its absorption and minimizes the toxicity of therapy.

Dr. E. John Wherry, Director of the Colton Center for Autoimmunity at Penn Medicine, offers his insight on the Center's therapeutic and novel research missions to revolutionize awareness, diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune diseases through collaborative, transformative, and translational science.

Penn radiation oncologist Karishima Khullar, MD, offers an overview of low-dose radiation therapy for patients who have not responded to medications, steroid injections, and other standard treatments for osteoarthritis.

Clinician-researcher Daniel Lefler, MD, reviews Afami-cel, the first FDA-approved immunotherapy designed to treat synovial cancer, a rare, aggressive soft-tissue malignancy.

Rare, heritable Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, imposes an approximate 90% risk of breast cancer and the sarcomas, among other cancers, over the lifetime of affected individuals. Drs. Suzanne MacFarland, and Kara Maxwell, discuss the urgent need for early diagnosis and intensive life-long monitoring, family dynamics, communication, advocacy and the avenues for care in Li-Fraumeni.

Dr. Anuja Dokras reviews the Women's Health Center for Clinical Innovation, a leader in clinical advances, research, and interactive programs for women throughout the reproductive cycle, from inspiring fertility (Fast Track to Fertility) to postpartum care (HeartSafe Motherhood) and beyond.

Dr. Elizabeth Anne Genovese offers an overview of peripheral artery disease, or PAD and its end-stage form, chronic limb-threatening ischemia, and discusses the treatments available at the Penn Advanced Limb Preservation (PALP) program, including investigational therapies for the “no-option” patient.

In this episode, Dr. Lisa Levine leads a discussion focusing on what burden does pregnancy place on the heart, and why some women and birthing people develop heart disease for the first time during pregnancy.

Rebecca Hamm, MD, provides an engaging overview of standardization and implementation science at Penn Medicine, a new field that seeks to inform health care change, particularly with regard to disparities in maternal outcomes and women's health.

Dr. Stephen Bagley provides an overview of two enrolling clinical trials at Penn Medicine. The first explores targeted CAR T therapy in recurrent IDH wild-type glioblastoma; the second pairs two investigational drugs in the treatment-of recurrent IDH-mutant glioma.

Drs. Neilanjan Nandi and Anish Sheth of Penn Gastroenterology discuss the current set of colonoscopy and elucidate the advantages of GI Genius, a program that incorporates AI into practice to improve upon colonoscopy outcomes.

Fertility specialist Christine Skiadas, MD, offers her insight on the causes of the worldwide decline in male fertility, and how Penn Penn Fertility Care is approaching this mystery through genetic testing and assisted reproductive technologies, including in vitro fertilization.

Dr. Michael Ibrahim offers an overview of the history and application of the Ross procedure, a method of aortic valve replacement that offers an alternative to the complexities of mechanical and bioprosthetic valves for younger adults.

Drs. Christian Bermudez and Asad Ali Usman furnish a comprehensive overview of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) Program at Penn Medicine and its affiliates, which now averages 200 to 250 cases of ECMO support every year, and reflect on recent advances in technique, the novel introduction of ECMO for COVID-associated ARDS, and patient survival on ECMO for up to six months as bridge to transplantation.

Lorraine Boakye, MD, discusses the application and research behind wearable motion sensing accelerometers that measure changes in velocity throughout the day for patients recovering from Achilles tendon injuries.

Parsing a topic of great concern in the wake of acute brain injury, David Fischer, MD, reviews the RECOVER Program for Disorders of Consciousness at Penn Medicine. RECOVER (REcovery of COnsciousness Via Evidence-based medicine and Research) is an effort to establish a clinical infrastructure for decisions involving neuroprognostication, and to provide comprehensive, specialized, and longitudinal care to patients with disorders of consciousness resulting from acute brain injury.

In this episode, Drs. Charles Vollmer and Nuzhat Ahmad lead a discussion focusing on pancreatitis, and how the Penn Pancreatic Center of Excellence specializes in treatment.

In this episode, Drs. Charles Vollmer and Nuzhat Ahmad lead a discussion focusing on pancreatitis, and how the Penn Pancreatic Center of Excellence specializes in treatment.

In this episode, Drs. Samir Mehta and Derek Donegan review a new approach to pelvic fragility fracture repair at Penn Trauma and Fracture Services—a fixation device that curves to accommodate the unique structure of the pelvis.

In this episode Dr. Lawrence discusses TAVR vs. SAVR. Who is a candidate for TAVR or SAVR? Who is a candidate for TAVR or SAVR and what makes one the best choice for your patient.

Dr. Chase Brown discusses his personalized approach to CABG.

The first installment of the podcast series from the specialists at Penn Medicine. This podcast will feature Dr. Scott Kasner, Vice-Chair for Clinical Affairs in Neurology at Penn Medicine. He will highlight the SELECT2 thrombectomy study.

In this episode, neurosurgeons Neil Malhotra, MD,. and James Schuster, MD, PhD, discuss the nuances and intricacies of spinal cancer, and the innovations, early diagnosis, research, and expertise in surgery, radiology, and medicine that motivate spinal oncology care at the Penn Spine Center.

In this panel, Drs. Malhotra, Weber, Mahmoud, and Shuster highlight chordoma.

In this episode, Host Melanie Cole joins Dr. Samir Mehta, Chief of the division of Orthopaedic Trauma and Fracture Care at Penn Medicine to review the treatment of clavicle fractures.

In this episode, we're highlighting commonly missed orthopedic trauma injuries with Dr. Samir Mehta. 

In this episode, Dr. Benjamin D'Souza will lead a discussion focusing on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction or HFPEF, and the AIM HIRE study, which concerns a related therapy.

In this episode, Dr. Jeremy Cannon and Dr. Daniel Hashimoto lead an interactive discussion focusing on diaphragm pacing, a device system that offers an alternative to mechanical ventilation for individuals with ventilator-dependent spinal cord injury and central hypoventilation syndrome.

In this episode, Dr. Christina Jackson leads a discussion focusing on highlighting endonasal approaches to skull-based surgery.

In this episode, Dr. Lorraine Boakye leads a discussion focusing on Achilles rupture and tendinopathy.

Host Melanie Cole, MS is joined by John M. Vasudevan, MD, CAQSM to discuss the Running Program and Endurance Sports Programs at Penn Medicine.

In this episode, Dr. Scott Kasner leads a discussion on SELECT2 Thrombectomy Study, and Penn's role in this study.

In this episode, Dr. Ty B. Dunn and transplant manager K. Louise Berry lead an interactive discussion highlighting total pancreatectomy islet autotransplant.

Dr. James Metz, MD walks through some recent advancements, achievements, and milestones in the Radiation Oncology department at Penn Medicine.

In this episode, Dr. Asad Ali Usman will lead a discussion focusing on mobile ECMO, including the mechanics of ECMO, and the difference between standard in-hospital ECMO machines and mobile ECMO.

In this episode, Dr. David Tarity leads a discussion focusing on the utilization of robotics in joint replacement surgery.

Giorgos Karakousis MD highlights retroperitoneal sarcoma. He shares the symptoms patients typically present with, the diagnostic criteria and treatment options for patients with retroperitoneal sarcoma. Additionally he shares what makes the Penn Medicine Abramson Cancer Center unique when it comes to diagnosing and treating retroperitoneal sarcoma and when it is important for physicians to refer their patients to Penn Medicine.

Genna Waldman M.D. discusses epilepsy in women. She shares parameters for diagnosis and criteria by which treatment would be initiated. She highlights how treatment for epilepsy has evolved over the last 10-20 years and some of the most exciting non surgical approaches to treatment.

The combination of a growing number of patients with end-stage renal disease and a shortage of organs poses a significant challenge to the transplant community. Donor shortage is associated with unfavorable consequences: prolonged waiting time, and compromised graft and patient survival. Efforts are required to expand the donor pool and get more patients to transplant, and sooner. Amanda Leonberg-Yoo MD and Robert Redfield III MD, FACS offer a roadmap of innovation in living donor kidney transplantation at Penn Medicine.

Dimitriy Petrov MD discusses the modern care approach to spine surgery. He highlights how the field of neurosurgery in spinal care has evolved dramatically in recent years, the latest technical advances in neurosurgery for spinal trauma and complex care at Penn Medicine and what distinguishes these technologies from the current standard of care in the region.

Lee Hartner MD discusses what factors community physicians should take into account when deciding which lumps and bumps to biopsy. He highlights some of the challenges that physicians and patients experience when certain lumps and bumps have been biopsied or removed before these patients are seen by the team and he shares how the expertise of Penn Medicine pathologists contributes to the best outcomes for sarcoma patients.

Peter Abt MD and Kim Olthoff MD discuss responsible expansion of liver transplantation. They offer the benefits of the Penn Liver Transplantation program and what they see as the single greatest challenge facing the field of liver transplantation today. Additionally, they share how Penn is finding innovative ways to increase access to deceased donor liver transplantation and the recommendations for timing of referral in liver transplantation

Bobby Ndu MD, MBA highlights minimally invasive foot and ankle surgery. He shares how minimally invasive surgery differs from traditional foot and ankle surgery, the benefits of these procedures and what makes Penn Orthopaedics unique when it comes to minimally invasive foot and ankle surgery.

Bill Jaffe MD and Jennifer Lloyd-Harris MD, MPH discuss aquablation and BPH treatment. They share how many of the existing treatments for BPH involve a tradeoff between efficacy and complications, who it is indicated for and what procedural or operative advantages Aquablation brings to BPH therapy. Additionally, they offer how this new treatment complements the total approach to BPH at Penn Urology.

While pregnancy is safe to undertake, there are specific risks for women with MS trying to conceive. Rachel Brandstadter, MD discusses these concerns and how can they be addressed for women with MS.Additionally, she explains the services Penn Medicine offers along the way, strategies for management of MS in the postpartum period and what referring providers should be aware of before they refer a patient to the MS and women's health specialists at Penn Medicine.