24th Annual Current Topics in Gastrointestinal and Liver Pathology CME Course
Date and Location: Saturday, October 26, 2024, 8:00 AM - Sunday, October 27, 2024, 6:45 PM, Online, Baltimore, MD
Overview
This 24th annual conference is intended as a practical overview for pathologists who encounter gastrointestinal, liver, and pancreatobiliary specimens in daily practice. Interpretation of biopsy and resection specimens will be addressed, as well as recent advances in ancillary testing and molecular diagnostics. Case presentations will be featured to apply presented concepts. Participants should come away with a better understanding of the diagnostic approach to non-neoplastic and neoplastic specimens and the application of modern molecular techniques.
Objectives
- Describe the biomarkers evaluated in colorectal carcinoma in routine clinical practice.
- List the molecular biomarkers that are used in clinical liver tumor pathology practice.
- Know the targeted therapies currently available for upper gastrointestinal malignancies.
- Discuss emerging risk stratification methods in Barrett esophagus.
- Discuss important criteria for risk stratification in patients with locally resected invasive colorectal adenocarcinoma.
- Consider the differences in gastric neuroendocrine neoplasms versus those in the small intestine, pancreas, colon, and anus.
- Describe GI pathology-specific applications of artificial intelligence.
- List the differential diagnosis for the most commonly encountered patterns of colitis.
- Discuss the differential diagnosis for the most common infectious organisms that affect the GI tract.
- Discuss the diagnostic workup for Hirschsprung’s disease.
- Review common issues in autoimmune hepatitis.
- Assess the utility of routine, special and immunohistochemical stains in constructing a final diagnosis for a liver mass directed biopsy.
- Describe the approach to sampling margins and lesional tissue in pancreatic resections.
- Recognize the major cystic neoplasms of the pancreas.
GI End of Year Celebration / Fellows' Graduation Party
The GI end of year celebration / fellows' graduation party was held on 6/8/24. We enjoyed delicious food and good conversation. We would like to congratulate our graduating fellows and thank them for all of their hard work. Congratulations, Dr. Tom Liang, Dr. Saman Karimi, and Dr. April Zhang! We would also like to thank Dr. Lysandra Voltaggio for hosting and Quiana Locker for organizing!
23rd Annual Current Topics in Gastrointestinal and Liver Pathology CME Course
Date and Location: Saturday, October 28, 2023, 7:30 AM - Sunday, October 29, 2023, 5:00 PM, Online, Baltimore, MD
Overview: This 23rd annual conference is intended as a practical overview for pathologists who encounter gastrointestinal and liver specimens in daily practice. Interpretation of biopsies of the upper GI tract mucosa and the liver will be addressed, as well as recent advances in pancreatic and biliary pathology. Case presentations will be featured to emphasize presented concepts. Participants should come away with a better understanding of interpretation of mucosal biopsies, liver biopsies, pancreatic/biliary disorders and the application of modern techniques to gastrointestinal disorders.
Objectives
- Discuss the differential diagnosis between dysplasia and reactive non-neoplastic atypia
- Discuss practical and clinically relevant issues in the diagnosis and staging of colorectal carcinoma
- Discuss new targetable options in biliary and colon cancer
- Understand the current performance and uncertainties of “liquid biopsy” multi-cancer early detection tests.
- Explain the clinical significance of response to neoadjuvant treatment.
- Recognize recently described patterns of inflammation associated with STI of the digestive tract
- Discuss the role and advances in circulating tumor DNA
- Discuss the use of special stains and immunohistochemical stains in the work up of liver tumors
- Differentiate between indolent and aggressive lymphoproliferative disorders of the GI tract
- Recognize challenges in small biopsies, frozen sections, and grossing of biliary neoplasms
- Discuss various neuroendocrine tumors across the length of the GI tract
- Discuss several types of GI mesenchymal tumors, with emphasis on their location and depth in the GI tract.
- Know the criteria used to classify the three main mass-forming precancerous neoplasms of the pancreas (Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms, intraductal oncocytic papillary neoplasms, and Intraductal tubulopapillary neoplasms).
GI Summer Picnic / Fellows' Graduation Party 2023
The annual GI summer picnic / fellows’ graduation party was held on Saturday, May 13, 2023. In spite of rainy weather, faculty, graduating fellows, and their families enjoyed good food and conversation. We would like to congratulate our graduating fellows: Dr. Ryan Sappenfield, Dr. Weihua Song, and Dr. Lei Sun. Special thanks to Dr. Robert Anders for hosting and Kim Rawlings for organizing!
New Johns Hopkins Atlas of Appendiceal Pathology for iPad
Please check out our new iPad app on appendiceal pathology. Drs. Jacqueline Birkness-Gartman, Elizabeth Montgomery and Kiyoko Oshima have authored a new iPAD application as an educational tool designed to teach practicing pathologists and trainees the pathology of the appendix. This beautifully illustrated app is the eighth in a series of teaching apps produced by the pathology team at Hopkins.
GI Summer Picnic / Fellow Graduation Party 2022
The annual picnic was held on Saturday, June 4th, 2022. Faculty, graduating fellows, and their families enjoyed good food and warm weather. We would like to congratulate our graduating fellows: Dr. Ozlem Kulak, Dr. Jasmine Shen, and Dr. Fengming Chen. Special thanks to Dr. Robert Anders for hosting and Finnley Rocca for organizing!
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Fengming Chen, Ozlem Kulak, Kiyoko Oshima, and Jasmine Shen
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Front Row: Kiyoko Oshima, Jasmine Shen, Lysandra Voltaggio. Back Row: Ralph Hruban, Robert Anders, Laura Wood, Andres Matoso, Tatianna Larman, Kevan Salimian.
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Front Row: Kiyoko Oshima, Ozlem Kulak, Lysandra Voltaggio, Robert Anders. Back Row: Ralph Hruban, Elizabeth Thompson, Laura Wood, Andres Matoso, Tatianna Larman, Kevan Salimian.
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Front Row: Robert Anders, Kiyoko Oshima, Fengming Chen, Lysandra Voltaggio. Back Row: Elizabeth Thompson, Ralph Hruban, Laura Wood, Andres Matoso, Tatianna Larman, Kevan Salimian.
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Jasmine Shen, Fengming Chen, and Ozlem Kulak, celebrating their graduation!
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Jackie Birkness-Gartman walking a chicken.
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Robert Anders' chickens were a highlight of the event!
GI Summer Picnic 2021
The annual picnic was held on Saturday, June 5th, 2021. Several members came with friends and family and enjoyed lots of good food and had great fun! Special thanks to Dr. Tasha Larman for hosting.
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Jose Rodriguez-Leon and Lysandra Voltaggio
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Jackie Birkness-Gartman and Lysandra Voltaggio
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Naziheh Assarzadegan and Lysandra Voltaggio
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Jackie Birkness-Gartman, Lysandra Voltaggio, and Laura Wood
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Robert Anders, Laura Wood, Tatianna Larman, and Elizabeth Thompson, showing off their beautiful gifts from the graduating fellows!
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GI Pathology Department 2021
2021 USCAP GI/Liver Pathology Annual "Dinner"
Past, present and future members of the Division gathered by Zoom on Sunday, March 14th to celebrate John Boitnott's many contributions to the division, to the field, and to the department. John has been a cherished member of our family since he joined Hopkins as a medical student in 1953. On the Zoom, speakers shared their memories of the numerous ways John inspired and supported many students and trainees over the years.
Congratulations and MANY thanks John!
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GI/Liver Pathology Virtual Group Photo
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Honoring Dr. John Boitnott
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Honoring Dr. John Boitnott
James R. Eshleman, M.D., Ph.D. to be the inaugural Ralph H. Hruban, M.D. Professor
I am pleased to share that the Johns Hopkins University Board of Trustees has approved James R. Eshleman, M.D., Ph.D. to be the inaugural Ralph H. Hruban, M.D. Professor in Pancreatic cancer Research in the Department of Pathology effective July 1, 2019. This newly endowed professorship was funded by private donors.
Jim received both his medical and doctoral degrees from the University of Pennsylvania in 1988. After finishing his internship in internal medicine at Temple University Hospital, he completed a research fellowship and residency training in pathology, as well as a clinical fellowship in transfusion medicine, at the Hospital ofthe University of Pennsylvania. In 1993-1996, Jim completed post-doctoral research training in the laboratory of Sanford D. Markowitz, M.D., Ph.D. at case Western Reserve University. After a brief stint on the faculty at Case, Jim and his wife Sue moved to Johns Hopkins in 1997. Jim was promoted to Associate Professor in 2002 and elevated to the rank of full professor in 2010. He holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Oncology and serves as Associate Director of the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory.
Since his arrival at Johns Hopkins 22 years ago, Jim has proven himself an impactful scientist, a gifted educator, and a talented clinician. His research focuses on identifying familial pancreatic cancer predisposition genes and identifying better chemotherapeutic agents for pancreatic cancer. In 2013, he was recognized by the American Association for Cancer Research with the prestigious Team Science Award.
In addition to driving cutting edge research in pancreatic cancer, Jim is an exceptional role model, educator, and mentor to trainees and junior faculty alike. During his career at Johns Hopkins, he has trained and mentored more than 25 fellows and doctoral candidates, along with dozens of medical students, residents and graduate students. Three times during his tenure, Jim has received the Johns Hopkins Pathobiology Graduate Program Teaching Award - a recognition bestowed by our program's students.
Jim has received numerous grant awards from the National Institutes of Health and other funding sources, co-authored more than 160 peer-reviewed publications, and authored five book chapters on molecular medicine and the detection of pancreatic cancer.
Simply put, Jim is a consummate researcher, educator, and mentor in the field of pancreatic cancer research. A formal installation ceremony to celebrate will be held in 2020. In the meantime, please congratulate Jim on this wonderful recognition of his many achievements.
Ralph Hruban, MD
Baxley Professor and Director of Pathology
Johns Hopkins Scientists Track Metabolic Pathways to Find Drug Combinations for Pancreatic Cancer
Cancer researchers have long observed the value of treating patients with combinations of anti-cancer drugs that work better than single drug treatments. Now, in a new study using laboratory-grown cells and mice, Johns Hopkins scientists report that a method they used to track metabolic pathways heavily favored by cancer cells provides scientific evidence for combining anti-cancer drugs, including one in a nanoparticle format developed at Johns Hopkins, that specifically target those pathways.
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