Names and Faces

Manson Receives International Menopause Society Prize

JoAnn E. Manson, MD, DrPH, chief of the Division of Preventive Medicine at BWH and the Elizabeth Fay Brigham Professor of Women’s Health at HMS, was the recipient of the International Menopause Society’s Henry Burger Prize for the most significant contributions to the field of menopause medicine and women’s health in the preceding two years. Manson was honored for her research on cardiovascular disease in women and clarifying the benefits and risks of estrogen therapy. She received the award at the World Congress on Menopause in Madrid in May.

American Public Health Association Awards Buring

Julie Buring, ScD, professor of Medicine, and professor of Ambulatory Care and Prevention at HMS, received the John Snow Award from the American Public Health Association. The award recognizes the contribution of an outstanding epidemiologist for excellence in epidemiological practice or research. The contributions judged most important for this award should have enduring value and involve improvement of human health.

Brenner Named Legacy Laureate

Barry M. Brenner, MD, director emeritus of the Renal Division at BWH, was named a Legacy Laureate by the University of Pittsburgh, his medical school alma mater. Brenner was one of 12 alumni presented with this honor for the outstanding personal and professional accomplishments. During his career, Brenner has made unparalleled advances in the treatment of kidney disease, trained many prominent nephrologists, published extensively and received honorary degrees from universities worldwide. All 2008 laureates were honored during the university’s homecoming festivities in October.

BWH Names Frankel as First PM&R Consultant

Physiatrist Jason Frankel, MD, is BWH’s first consultant in general Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R). He earned his MD from the University of Chicago and completed his PM&R residency at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is an instructor in the Harvard Department of PM&R and previously held a faculty appointment at Tufts Medical School. Physiatrists are nerve, muscle, bone and brain experts whose objective is to restore maximum function lost through injury, illness or disabling conditions, and they focus on the treatment of painful and disabling conditions that complicate patients’ return to the community. Frankel is a generalist within the field and is available to assist with diagnosis, treatment and discharge planning. You can find him in the BWH On-Call pager directory under Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Page him directly to order a consult and then enter the consult under his name in BICS.

Baughman Receives 2008 Laennec Master Clinician Award

Kenneth Baughman, MD, director of the Advanced Heart Disease Section of the Cardiovascular Division at BWH, received the 2008 Laennec Master Clinician Award from the American Heart Association (AHA) Council on Clinical Cardiology. Baughman earned this award for his lifelong outstanding contribution to teaching and patient care in cardiovascular disease. The council presented the award to Baughman at the annual AHA Scientific Sessions in New Orleans, La., in November.

14th Mannick Awards Presented

The 14th Annual John A. Mannick Awards in October were presented to to Drs. Cyrus Ahmadi-Yazdi, Adam Stearns, Joshua Winer and Karen Ho. These awards recognize the BWH Surgery residents’ work in basic science or clinical research. The award is named after John A. Mannick, MD, who served as surgeon-in-chief from 1976 to 1994. Mannick is a leader in the field of vascular surgery, and he oversaw the growth of the department during the formation of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in 1980.

Colson Wins Healthcare Innovation Award

Yolonda L. Colson, MD, PhD, of the Division of Thoracic Surgery, and colleagues who make up the CIMIT Cancer Advanced Technology Team, received the Edward M. Kennedy Award for Healthcare Innovation. The Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology (CIMIT) presents the Edward M. Kennedy Award annually to a team of doctors and scientists whose work in the previous year embodies the CIMIT mission of innovative collaboration. Colson and colleagues were honored for their collective work to develop a translational approach to regionally prevent early metastatic cancer in the lymph nodes. The award was presented to Colson and her team during the CIMIT Innovation Congress opening reception at the Back Bay Events Center in Boston.

Berliner Named ASH President

Nancy Berliner, MD, division chief of Hematology at BWH, was named the 2009 president of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), a professional organization that promotes research, clinical care, education, training and advocacy in hematology. Berliner is a member of ASH’s executive committee, which sets the annual strategic agenda for the Society. At the ASH annual meeting in December, Berliner assumed the position of president with the passing of the gavel at the end of the meeting.

Cibas Receives Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach Award

Edmund Cibas, MD, director of the Division of Cytopathology at BWH, received the Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach Award from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), a private, non-profit organization that assesses and advances the quality of resident physicians’ education in the country. Cibas was nominated for this award by his peers and students for his innovative residency program curricula, his contribution to graduate medical education and for serving as an exemplary role model for residents. Along with 10 other recipients, Cibas will receive the award during the 2009 ACGME’s Annual Educational Conference in Dallas.

American College of Rheumatology Honors BWH Physicians

The ACR recognized BWH physicians during the association’s national meeting held in San Francisco last October. Michael Weinblatt, MD, John R. and Eileen K. Riedman professor of Medicine at HMS, received the ACR Distinguished Clinical Investigator Award, which is awarded to a clinical scientist making outstanding contributions to the field of rheumatology. David Lee, MD, assistant professor of medicine at HMS, was presented with the Henry Kunkel Young Investigator Award for outstanding independent contributions to basic or clinical research in the field of rheumatology. Maura Iverson, MD, assistant professor of Medicine, received the Ann Kunkel Advocacy Award from the Association of Rheumatology Health Professional. This award is presented to a member of the society with a history of advocating at local, regional and national levels.

Khuri Receives 2008 Ernest Amory Codman Award

The late Shukri F. Khuri, MD, former vice chairman of BWH Department of Surgery, was awarded the 2008 Ernest Amory Codman Award from the Joint Commission for his leadership role in using performance measures to improve health care quality and safety. Khuri, who passed away Sept. 26, 2008, worked in the field of surgical quality improvement and risk-adjusted surgical outcomes for more than 20 years. He achieved national and international prominence in the fields of cardiac pathophysiology, cardiac surgery, medical informatics, quality improvement and health policy research.

New Fellowship Honors Carpenter

The Renal Division at BWH has named a fellowship to honor Charles B. (Bernie) Carpenter, MD, a long-time BWH faculty and one of the founders of the American Society of Transplant Physicians, now known as the American Society of Transplantation.

The Charles B. Carpenter Transplant Fellowship, to begin in July 2009, will be awarded to a renal transplant fellow who will pursue advanced training in transplantation.

Carpenter recently stepped down as an active member of the faculty at BWH. During his 44 years of service, he trained two generations of leaders in transplant medicine and served on a number of boards and committees at the National Institutes of Health, HMS and BWH. He was BWH’s associate director of the Renal Division and director of the Laboratory of Immunogenetics and Transplantation and served as chief of the renal division for three years.

During his career, Carpenter authored more than 350 professional papers and chapters of medical texts. In 2005, he received the David Hume Memorial Award of National Kidney Foundation, which is the highest honor given by that organization to a scientist in the field of kidney and urologic diseases.

Fletcher Wins Grant to Develop GIST Therapies

Jonathan Fletcher, MD, of the Pathology Department at BWH, was awarded a research grant from the Life Raft Group (LRG), a non-profit organization providing support for those with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), one of a rare group of cancers that can occur in connective tissues, bones, muscles, fat, nerves, blood vessels and cartilage. Fletcher received this multi-year grant for the second time, along with nine other international researchers, funded from a pool of $2 million. Fletcher’s research will focus on developing new and more effective therapies for GIST, including a focus on addressing the issue of patients’ resistance to the standard drug for this disease. Together with the LRG directors, Fletcher is a co-founder and coordinator of the LRG international research effort to combat GIST.

Wolf receives Distinguished Medical Educator Award from APDIM

Marshall Wolf, MD, director emeritus for residency programs for the Department of Medicine at BWH, was honored as the first recipient of the Distinguished Medical Educator Award from the Association of Program Directors of Internal Medicine. The APDIM selected Wolf to receive the inaugural award based on his evidence of gifted teaching, a record of outstanding contributions to graduate medical education, national recognition of expertise in medical education and scholarly achievement in the broad field of education with dissemination of work beyond their home institution. Wolf was presented the award during the APDIM fall conference in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Karp Named to Top Innovators Under 35 List

Jeffrey Karp, PhD, director of the Laboratory for Advanced Biomaterials and Stem Cell-Based Therapeutics in the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology and instructor in the HST Center for Biomedical Engineering in the Department of Medicine at BWH, was named as one of the world’s top innovators under the age of 35 by Technology Review magazine. Karp was selected from more than 300 nominees by a panel of expert judges and the editorial staff of Technology Review. The TR35 is an elite group of accomplished young innovators who exemplify the spirit of innovation. Karp and the other TR35 winners for 2008 were featured in the September Technology Review magazine and honored at the EmTech08 Conference held at MIT.

BWH Researchers Receive AHA Grants

The American Heart Association announced the awarding of $3.15 million to 11 BWH researchers in November. Investigators receiving these new grants are committed to helping the American Heart Association eradicate heart disease and stroke.

The new awardees of BWH are:

Stephen Chan, MD, PhD; Postdoctoral Fellowship; $96,000; “Mechanisms of Regulation and Function of a Hypoxia-Inducible MicroRNA in Human Pulmonary Arterial Endothelial Cells”

Brendan Everett, MD, MPH; National Scientist Development Grant; $308,000; “Genes and the Environment: Does Smoking Modify Genetic Risk?”

Jae Kang, ScD; National Scientist Development Grant; $277,896; “A Prospective Study of Healthy Diet and Risk of Cognitive Decline in Women with Cardiovascular Disease”

Sachiko Kanki-Horimoto, MD, PhD; Postdoctoral Fellowship; $96,000; “Myocardial Protection through IL-33 and ST2 Signaling”

Jeffrey Karp, PhD; Scientist Development Grant; $198,000; “Gecko Inspired Pericardial Tissue Adhesives”

Atul Malhotra, MD; Established Investigator Award; $500,000; “Targeted Sleep Apnea Therapy by Identifying Underlying Mechanisms”

David Mount, MD; Grant-in-Aid; $198,000; “Mechanic Analysis of SLC26 Anion Exchangers”

Julian Sabiosky, BHM; Postdoctoral Fellowship; $78,000; “The Role for Reflex Control of Genioglossus Single Motor Units in obstructive sleep apnea”

Johannes Schlondorff, MD, PhD; National Fellow-to-Faculty Transition Award; $593,000; “TRPC6 Regulation and its Role in Glomerular Pathobiology”

Guo-Ping Shi, DSc; National Established Investigator Award; $500,000; “Role of Mast Cells in Atherosclerosis and Aortic Aneurysms”

Hun Yoshioka, MD, PhD; National Scientist Development Grant; $308,000; “Thioredoxin-Interacting Protein Regulates Mitochondrial Metabolism in Cardiac Adaptation to Ischemia”