Research Elective Residents
Resident Research Electives
The Resident Research Electives page introduces the diverse and accomplished residents who have engaged in specialized research as part of their surgical training. These residents have pursued research electives that align with their interests, allowing them to contribute to advancing medical knowledge and improving patient care. Below, you'll find detailed profiles of these residents, highlighting their educational backgrounds, research achievements, and personal interests, demonstrating their commitment to becoming leaders in the field of surgery.
Tsion Andine, MD
Hometown: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Clinical Interests: Colorectal surgery and surgical oncology
Research Interests: Global surgery, colorectal surgery, healthcare disparities, capacity building, and implementation science in low-resource settings
Samridhi Banskota, MD
Hometown: Kathmandu, Nepal
Clinical Interests: Colorectal Surgery, Surgical Oncology, AYA Population
Research Interests: Financial toxicity associated with cancer care, with a particular focus on the adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer population
Jae Cho, MD
Boston University School of Medicine
Jackson Fulk-Logon, MD
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Hometown: Worcester, MA Jackson earned a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Tufts University. While at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, Jackson earned the Dean’s Distinguished Scholarship based on his academic performance. He has participated in research in the areas of antithrombotic adherence, end-stage renal disease, and pediatric tracheomalacia. Jackson has a strong interest in education and has served as an instructor in a peer-to-peer tutoring program, as the student representative for a student question bank at the University of Colorado, and as the student liaison for his medical school problem-based learning course. Jackson is committed to expanding representation in medicine and has been involved in the Student National Medical Association and White Coats 4 Black Lives. He is passionate about decreasing inequities and health disparities for underserved communities. Jackson is a musician, and was a drum set player in the Tufts Jazz Orchestra. In his free time, he enjoys learning jazz drum solos, producing music, watching the Premier League, playing basketball, and yoga.
Ariana Ginsberg, MD
Hometown: New York, New York
Clinical Interests: Women in surgery, pediatric surgery, and thoracic surgery
Research Interests: Pediatric surgery, pediatric esophageal and airway disease, and surgical education
Camila Guetter, MD
Hometown: Curitiba, Brazil
Clinical Interests: Vascular surgery
Research Interests: Vascular surgery and population health, with a focus on using modern epidemiological methods and causal inference frameworks to answer clinical questions
Justin Heidel, MD, MEng
Hometown: Burlington, Kentucky
Clinical Interests: Thoracic surgery, with a particular interest in outcomes for lung, esophageal, and thymic cancers
Research Interests: Dr. Heidel is completing a clinical research fellowship at MGB, serving as the John D. Mitchell Thoracic Surgery Fellow. He is also studying patient-reported outcomes after tracheobronchoplasty.
Paige Holden, MD
Hometown: Granby, Connecticut
Clinical Interests: Trauma and acute care surgery and critical care
Research Interests: Healthcare quality and safety, quality improvement, and improving care for older adults with colorectal cancer
Alexander Idarraga, MD
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Hometown: Milwaukee, WI Alexander Idarraga is a fourth-year student at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. Alexander was selected as a member of both the Gold Humanism Honor Society and Alpha Omega Alpha. Prior to medical school, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a degree in Russian Language and Civilization, and he spent a study-abroad year in Kazakhstan. Alex has a deep knowledge of Russian language, literature, government, and culture. He was also a Division I athlete for the crew team. Alex worked in research via a T 32 funded grant titled “Machine Learning Detects False Negative Benign Thyroid Nodule Diagnoses.” He has many publications based on his earlier research in foot and ankle, and now relating to the thyroid work as well. Alex first independently wrote Python code to turn raw natural language processing output into an analyzable format. Alex has a record of service work mentoring pre-med Latinx students. He also served as the Latino Medical Student Association Community Affairs Chair. Along with learning languages, Alex’s hobbies include Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and surfing the Great Lakes.
Anusha Jayaram, MD
Tufts University School of Medicine
Juhye Kang, MD
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Hometown: Germantown, MD
Juhye Kang is a fourth-year student at University of Maryland School of Medicine where she has been elected to AOA. S he is also a summa cum laude graduate of the University of Maryland College Park in the Integrated Life Sciences Honor College with a Bachelor of Science in Neurobiology and Physiology. She was the recipient of a Presidential Scholarship while in college. She has been an AOA Student Panel Chair, Co-President of the Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association, a member of the admissions committee, and a representative on the Student Diversity Council. She has also served as a Global Surgery Student Alliance representative for the Global Health and Surgery Interest Group, and as a student teacher for incoming medical students. Juhye has a love for animals and took advantage of schooling from home during the pandemic to foster through the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS) as well as work as an adoption class counselor. Her other interests include coking, hiking, and camping.
Lisa Kojima, MD
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Hometown: Weston, MA
Lisa Kojima is a fourth-year medical student at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM) of Case Western Reserve University. Lisa also obtained a Masters in Clinical Research in from Case Western Reserve University. Lisa graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering in Chemical and Biological Engineering as a major emphasis with a minor emphasis in Biomedical Engineering. In between college and medical school, she worked as a research assistant in the lab of Dr. James Markmann at MGH. She has pursued extensive research during medical school through the CCF Center for Value-based care and also through the CCF Digestive Disease and Surgery Institute. From these efforts, she has multiple publications and presentations. She was the recipient of the Early Career Investigator Award for the AASLD in 2021. In medical school, Lisa has served as the medical student representative on the Curriculum Review Committee and on the Diversity Dinner Steering Committee and she is a student leader in the Christian Medical and Dental Association. She has also engaged in teaching during medical school, working as a preceptor and a teaching assistant in several courses. Lisa taught herself to code in R. Her other interests include weightlifting, playing guitar and improving ambidexterity.
Athriya Kumar, MD
Rutgers, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Hometown: Hyderabad, India; Acton, MA
Athriya Kumar is graduating from Rutgers, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She previously earned a BA in Genetics at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ, where she received the highest departmental honors for her honors thesis and the Department of Genetics Award for Excellence. During medical school, Athriya has conducted research in the lab of Dr. David August, studying the effects of prophylactic anticoagulation after pancreatectomy, and with Dr. Amanda Laird, investigating the annotation of retroperitoneal masses. These efforts have yielded several publications and presentations. Recognizing the potential for her role as teacher to extend beyond simply educating students, Athriya has been a devoted mentor and advisor to countless individuals through her contributions to Rutgers’ Admissions Ambassador program and Peer Mentor program. Athriya has served as Vice President for the Rutgers’ Association of Women Surgeons and has served as President of GlobeMed at Rutgers, which is a student-led global health organization that partners with grassroots organizations to promote education, awareness, and funding for projects relating to healthcare, education, women-owned businesses, and water sanitation in Uganda. Athriya’s hobbies include: drawing, painting, reading, fitness, and dogs (fostering).
Vasundhara Mathur, MD
Vardhman Mahavir Medical College & Safdarjung Hospital
Hometowns: Noida, India and Boston, MA
Vasundhara Mathur earned her MBBS from Vardhman Mahavir Medical College & Safdarjung Hospital in India, where she received multiple awards, including a Certificate of Leadership, reward for clinical research, and for ranking in the top 0.5% of applicants. She then completed one year of training in a rotating internship there, before moving to the US. She currently serves as a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Laboratory for Surgical and Metabolic Research at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Here, she orchestrates the development of an extensive Tissue Repository for the General/GI Division as a resource for ongoing and future research, facilitating collaborations with fellow scientists. During this time, she has also served as a Global Surgery Fellow for the WHO Collaborating Center for Low and Middle income countries. Her efforts in these areas have led to multiple publications and presentations to date, and has won awards for her research through the Massachusetts Chapter of the American College of Surgeons and the Harvard Surgery Research Day.
Paolo de Angelis, MD
Hometown: Milan, Italy
Clinical Interests: Thoracic Surgery, with plans to work at an academic institution affiliated with a cancer center
Research Interests: Clinical outcomes and translational research in Thoracic Surgery, with a focus on novel therapeutics for lung and esophageal cancer, basic science, industry partnerships, and large clinical datasets
J. Christopher Polanco Santana, MD, MSc, MPH
Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud
Chris' hometown is Cabarete, Dominican Republic. He received his MD from Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra in the Dominican Republic. After medical school, Chris pursued a research fellowship with Dr. Tara Kent at BIDMC. He went on to receive a Master's of Science degree from Dresden International University in Germany and a Master's of Public Health degree from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. As a MPH student, Chris continued to work as a research fellow with Dr. Tara Kent at BIDMC. He participated in a series of studies related to clinical and pathophysiological HPB surgery problems, as well as a project elucidating whether letters of recommendation writer characteristics, including gender, age, professorial rank, and leadership positions, predict language bias and the Provider Awareness and Cultural Dexterity Toolkit for Surgeons (PACTS) Trial. Chris' interests include kitesurfing and hiking. He is also a self-taught computer programmer since the age of 12.
Dominic Recco, MD
Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Clinical Interests: Congenital cardiac surgery
Research Interests: Clinical and translational research, cardiovascular disease animal models, device development, and innovative surgical strategies
Jeslyn Rodriguez, MD
Hometown: Miami, FL
Clinical Interests: Surgical Oncology, Thoracic Surgery
Research Interests: AI Use in Healthcare, Health Equity, Health Policy
Eve Roth, MD
Harvard Medical School
Eve's hometown is Wellesley, Massachusetts, and she completed her undergraduate studies at Yale University, majoring in English and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. She received her MD from Harvard Medical School and was engaged in a number of clinical and educational research projects, leading to multiple publications. Eve has been active in curriculum reform, serving as a Medical Education Student Representative, representing her peers on committees addressing the cultural and academic environment at HMS, including the Education Policy and Curriculum Committee, Surgical Education Committee, and as Student Co-Chair on the LCME re-accreditation committee. Eve's hobbies include marathon running, cooking, baking desserts, skiing, reading, and playing flute.
Nensi Ruzgar, MD, MHS
Hometown: Toronto, Canada, and Istanbul, Turkey
Clinical Interests: Pediatric surgery and surgical oncology
Research Interests: Tumor multi-omics, immigrant and refugee health, and global health disparities
Emily Scire, MD, MBE
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Emily's hometowns are Woburn, Massachusetts, Dover, New Hampshire and Wells, Maine. She graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Notre Dame with a BS in Biochemistry. She received her MD/MBE degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. As a medical student, she served on the Bioethics Standing Committee of the AMA Student Section and was appointed Northeast Student Representative to the Christian Medical and Dental Associations. In 2019, she received the Theodore Friedmann Prize for Significant Advances in Biomedical Ethics. She served on the board of the Agnew Surgery Society and the Agnew Surgery Clinic for uninsured Philadelphians. She was a peer mentor for the University of Pennsylvania Surgery Clerkship, served as a teaching assistant for the Doctoring and Anatomy courses, and was her class representative on the Diversity and Inclusion Student Advisory Committee. Emily's interests include gardening, knitting, crafting, baking, skiing, hiking, cycling, swimming, rowing, reading, and singing.
Kyra Watson, MD
Howard University College of Medicine
Hometown: Camden, Delaware Kyra Watson will be graduating from Howard University College of Medicine, where she was elected to Gold Humanism Honor Society and was the recipient of the Howard University College of Medicine Center of Excellence Award and the Harold W. Korol MD and Iris S Korol Scholarship. She previously earned a BS in Biology, with a minor in Sociology, from Emory University. Kyra has conducted clinical outcomes research relating to bariatric and acute care surgery, and is currently studying gender identity and resident composition. In medical school, Kyra served as class President during her second year and presently holds the position of President for the Howard Chapter of the Association of Women Surgeons (AWS). During her first summer in medical school, Kyra served as a mentor to HBCU undergraduate students with the Pre-Health Scholars Summer Enrichment Program, demonstrating her ardent dedication to guiding the aspirations of emerging medical professionals. During her first two years of medical school, shaped by the COVID pandemic, Kyra devoted a considerable span of time to impactful community outreach initiatives. Her contributions were underscored by her commitment to administering vaccines biweekly at the Howard University-based COVID vaccine clinic and devoting evenings to volunteering, offering invaluable medical care to uninsured community members surrounding Howard University at the New Freedman’s Clinic. Kyra’s hobbies are live music, outdoor activities, and art.
