SCRIPS is not currently accepting applications for Faculty Scholar positions. Send any questions to Amy Martinez, PhD (amy.f.martinez@vumc.org)
MEET OUR CURRENT FACULTY SCHOLARS:
Naweed Chowdhury, MD, MPH
SCRIPS Scholar 2023
About Naweed: Dr. Naweed Chowdhury is an Associate Professor of Otolaryngology at Vanderbilt who specializes in rhinology and endoscopic skull base surgery. Originally from Texas, Dr. Chowdhury completed his undergraduate studies at Rice University in Chemistry before going on to medical school at Baylor College of Medicine. He then went to the University of Kansas for residency training followed by a fellowship in Rhinology, Sinus, and Skull Base Surgery at Oregon Health and Science University. As a faculty member, he obtained an MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health where he focused on data science, machine learning, and biostatistics.
Research Focus: Dr. Chowdhury’s research focuses on the use of integrated multi-omics approaches to better understand the pathogenesis and epidemiology of chronic sinusitis, particularly with respect to the role of environmental air pollution. With this knowledge, he hopes to develop strategies for primary and secondary prevention of sinonasal disorders and highly-effective personalized treatments for those currently in need of care.
Sudeep Sunthankar, MD, MSCI
About Sudeep: Dr. Sudeep Sunthankar is a physician in the Division of Pediatric Cardiology. Dr. Sunthankar completed his residency in pediatrics and fellowships in pediatric cardiology and advanced cardiac imaging at Vanderbilt. During his fellowship, he completed a Master of Science in Clinical Investigation from Vanderbilt University. Dr. Sunthankar has a clinical focus on caring for patients with congenital heart disease with particular expertise in cardiac MRI, transthoracic echocardiography, and transesophageal echocardiography.
Research focus: Dr. Sunthankar is interested in identifying clinical features and genetic variants predictive of key clinical outcomes such as acute kidney injury and thrombosis following congenital heart surgery. His overall aim is to develop personalized risk prediction platforms for patients with congenital heart disease to mitigate the incidence of these comorbid conditions and identify patients warranting earlier prophylactic or therapeutic interventions.
Courtney Penn, MD
SCRIPS Scholar 2022
About Courtney: Dr. Courtney Penn is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist. A graduate of Stanford University and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Penn completed an OB/GYN residency at the University of Michigan followed by gynecologic oncology fellowship at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Clinically, Dr. Penn focuses on comprehensive care for gynecologic malignancies through both surgery and medical treatment.
Research Focus: Dr Penn’s research focuses on identifying biomarkers to predict response to immunotherapy in gynecologic cancers.
Marcus Tan, MBBS, FACS
SCRIPS Scholar 2021
About Marcus: Dr. Marcus Tan is an Assistant Professor of Surgery in the Division of Surgical Oncology and Endocrine Surgery. As a resident in general surgery, he spent three years in the Laboratory of Biologic Cancer Therapy at Washington University in St Louis studying the immunology of pancreatic cancer. He completed a fellowship in Complex General Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. As faculty at Vanderbilt, his clinical focus is on tumors of the upper abdomen (pancreas, stomach, liver) and retroperitoneum.
Research Focus: Dr. Tan's research focuses on early molecular events in pancreatic neoplasia, especially the mechanisms of neural infiltration in intra-ductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN).
SCRIPS ALUMNI
Naira Baregamian, MD, MMS, FACS
SCRIPS Scholar 2020
Senior Faculty Mentor: W. Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD
About Naira: Dr. Naira Baregamian is an Assistant Professor of Surgery. She is a fellowship-trained Endocrine Surgeon who joined the Vanderbilt faculty in the Division of Surgical Oncology and Endocrine Surgery after serving as an Endocrine Surgery Fellow in the Department of Surgery at Yale University. Dr. Baregamian completed her surgical residency and NIH T32 surgical research training at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Clinically, Dr. Baregamian specializes in surgical treatment of benign and malignant conditions of the endocrine glands - parathyroid, thyroid and adrenal.
Research Focus: Dr. Baregamian’s research focuses on understanding underlying molecular mechanisms of thyroid and other endocrine cancer progression, and defining the role of tumor metabolism and redox regulation of microenvironment and immunometabolism in advanced endocrine cancers.