Anthony E. Samir, MBBCH
Director of CURT and Service Chief,Body Ultrasound
Department of Radiology/Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School
Dr. Anthony Samir (he/him/his) is an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, and a Diagnostic and Interventional Radiologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital, where he serves as Service Chief for Body Ultrasound Imaging Services. He trained as a MD general practitioner in South Africa, followed by advanced post-graduate training in Internal Medicine and Surgery in New Zealand and Australia, and a five year-residency in Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology in Australia. He completed additional training in medical informatics, followed by two one year subspecialty fellowships in Abdominal Imaging and Interventional Radiology at the Massachusetts General Hospital. He joined the faculty of MGH Radiology and Harvard Medical School in 2006, and then completed a Masters degree in Public Health at the Harvard School of Public Health, with a concentration in the techniques and methods to measure the effectiveness of technology in healthcare settings.
In addition to actively seeing patients, Dr. Samir currently works in several domains: (1) Imaging biomarker development and clinical trials: Dr. Samir is an internationally recognized expert in the field of non-invasive diffuse liver disease staging. His research group pioneered widely-used diagnostic assessments for liver fibrosis, and he currently chairs the 32-member clinical subcommittee of the Radiological Society of North America concerned with ultrasonic liver fibrosis staging. Dr. Samir has led two major prospective clinical trials of ultrasound elastography for liver disease and thyroid disease, and is an author of the Uniform Protocol for Imaging in Clinical Trials for ultrasound elastography. (2) Mentorship and education: Dr. Samir is co-editor of Abdominal imaging, a widely used two-volume subspecialty reference text, and is the author or co-author of more than 20 educational book chapters. He has mentored more than thirty post-doctoral fellows, most of whom have gone on to successful academic and clinical careers. (3) Technology development: Dr. Samir co-founded the MGH Clinical Ultrasound Research Laboratory and the MGH/MIT Center for Ultrasound Research & Translation, a joint center focused on rapid innovation and tight integration of engineering and iterative clinical refinement. In these leadership roles, together with collaborators, he has developed a number of medical imaging and image-guided interventional technologies, and has acquired extensive experience innovating successfully in partnership with other academic groups and industry. He has a strong interest in clinical applications and integration of predictive analytics and machine learning models into medical devices. He has received numerous collaborative foundation and government grants and industry funding and support from almost every major medical device company. His awards include the Far Eastern Economic Review Young Inventors Prize, the Siemens Australia Research prize, and the ABC Television Inventor’s Prize.
Elizabeth Sands, JD
Administrative Manager at CURT
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Clinical Translational Research Team
Theodore Pierce, MD
Director of Clinical Translational Research Program at CURT, Ultrasound Service Chief
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School
After receiving a Bachelor of Science in physics from Boston College and medical doctorate from Duke University School of Medicine, Dr. Theodore Pierce (he/him/his) completed diagnostic radiology residency, a cardiovascular imaging focused year, and an abdominal imaging fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital. With the support of the 2020 ARRS Scholar award, Dr. Pierce completed the Program in Clinical Effectiveness and MPH degree at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Pierce is currently an Assistant Professor of Radiology at Harvard University, an abdominal radiologist at MGH, and the director of the clinical translational research program at the Center for Ultrasound Research and Translation. His work focuses on the translation of cutting-edge ultrasound technology from conception to clinical practice including quantitative ultrasound biomarkers of metabolic liver disease, conformable ultrasound transducers, ultrasound guided surgical robotics, novel ultrasound pulse sequences, and artificial intelligence image analytics. Dr. Pierce is excited to bring this experience to the director of clinical translational research role to further the department’s mission of clinical excellence, academic distinction, and leading in ultrasound practice.
Arinc Ozturk, MD
Instructor
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Dr. Arinc Ozturk (he/him/his) is a research faculty at Harvard Medical School and a researcher at the Center for Ultrasound Research & Translation (CURT), Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital. His research focuses on ultrasound imaging of the liver, early diagnosis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and improving diagnostic performance by applying artificial intelligence (AI). He is interested in interactions with the industry, and the USA and European regulatory requirements for AI-enhanced ultrasound and wearable ultrasound technologies. He is involved in American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) initiatives to discover the specific regulatory requirements for these specific applications. He is currently the co-chair of the AIUM / Quantitative Imaging Biomarkers Alliance (QIBA) Pulse Echo Quantitative Ultrasound Attenuation Committee and Liver Fat Quantification Task Force. He is the associate editor of WFUMB Open journal, and he serves as a reviewer for several journals, including, Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine, Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology, Abdominal Radiology, European Journal of Radiology, American Journal of Roentgenology, Hepatology and Radiology.
Qian Li, MD
Director of the MGH-China Translational Ultrasound at CURT
Chief of the Department of Ultrasound, Shenzhen University General Hospital, in Shenzhen, China.
Qian Li received his MD degree from Peking University Health Science Center in Beijing, China, and completed his resident and fellow training in the Department of Radiology at Peking University First Hospital. In 2010, he joined the Center for Ultrasound Research & Translation (CURT), at Massachusetts General Hospital for nealy 2 years as a post doc fellow, and pursued his interests in thyroid, liver, and prostate sonoelastography. In 2015, Dr. Li re-joined the CURT to continue his research interests in the areas of (1) fusion-guided biopsy imaging in prostate cancer, (2) imaging marker development in machine perfused donor liver, and (3) machine learning assisted ultrasound diagnosis. In addition to conducting his research, Dr. Li began working with and coaching the Chinese post docs at the CURT. He has been instrumental in formalizing the CURT training program for Chinese post docs and assumed the role of Director of the MGH-China Translational Ultrasound Research Training Program since 2016.
Siddhi Hegde, MBBS
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Siddhi Hegde (she/her/hers), MBBS, is a medical professional who graduated from KVG Medical College and Hospital, India. She embarked on her journey with CURT in November 2022 and is currently an applicant to radiology residency programs for the NRMP Match 2024. Siddhi’s research interests span a diverse spectrum, encompassing Liver ultrasound, Elastography Quality Improvement, Post-COVID changes, Health equity, and Machine learning. As a Research Fellow at CURT, Siddhi is committed to contributing her expertise and passion to the field of radiology research, with a focus on advancing innovative technologies and reducing healthcare disparities.
Kim Naja, MD
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Kim Naja (she/her/hers) joined CURT in June 2023. Her educational journey began with a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the American University of Beirut, in Lebanon, followed by obtaining her MD from the same institution. Currently, her research interests revolve around ultrasound research, with a specific focus on abdominal ultrasound. Kim is passionate about optimizing ultrasound applications, especially for individuals with higher BMI for whom traditional methods may be less effective. She is actively involved in a project aimed at improving ultrasound outcomes for this population, combining her medical background with innovative research to enhance healthcare accessibility and accuracy.
Sai Dhanush Reddy Jeggari, MBBS
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Dhanush Reddy (he/him/his), MBBS, is our newest research fellow. He graduated from Osmania Medical College in Hyderabad, India. He is actively working with ultrasound attenuation imaging, ultrasound elastography quality improvement, and the development of wearable ultrasound devices. When not in the lab, he enjoys pursuing culinary adventures and globe-trotting. He loves the rich history and vibrant culture that Boston offers. Dhanush joined the CURT team in August 2023 and continues to explore these fascinating avenues of research. He ultimately wants to pursue a residency in Radiology.
Katie Pope
Clinical Research Coordinator II
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Katie (she/they) is the Senior Clinical Research Coordinator at CURT. She coordinates the myriad of academic studies and clinical trials in the lab. Originally from Oregon, she graduated from Portland State University and spent some time working as a Research Assistant in Oregon before moving to Boston. Katie loves working in medical research as a way to make an impact on a wide-ranging group of patients, and always be learning about something new! Outside the lab, she spends time cooking new recipes, exploring the beautiful wilderness in the Northeast, and planning her next adventure.
Lauren Ling
Clinical Research Coordinator I
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Lauren Ling (she/her/hers) is the Clinical Research Coordinator I at CURT since June 2023. She graduated from Tufts University with a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry in May 2023, and has previously conducted autophagy and breast cancer research at Tufts Medical Center. Lauren is passionate about increasing accessibility and inclusivity in healthcare and clinical research.
Machine Learning Team
Peng Guo, PhD
Machine Learning Team Lead
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
In July 2022, Peng Guo, PhD (he/him/his) brings a wealth of expertise to the role as the Machine Learning Team Lead at the Center of Ultrasound and Research Translation (CURT), having spent years as a postdoctoral researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from 2018 to 2022. Before joining CURT he was working as a postdoctoral researcher at the Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications (LHNCBC), National Library of Medicine (NLM). Now, at CURT, he leads a dynamic team focused on advancing machine learning and artificial intelligence methods covering image classification, segmentation, and deep learning-based image information retrieval in the context of ultrasound imaging. His research interests span semi/self-supervised learning, data-centric AI, federated learning, and integrating human-in-the-loop principles into deep learning models. He actively contributes to the scientific community through conferences and collaborations, aiming to push the boundaries of what’s achievable at the nexus of artificial intelligence and healthcare.
Eugene Cheah, MS
Clinical Data Engineer at CURT
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Eugene Cheah (he/him/his) began his journey at Massachusetts General Hospital as an intern in September 2018 and quickly evolved into a full-time Translational Researcher as a Clinical Data Engineer in July 2019. With a deep-rooted passion for data-driven healthcare advancements, Eugene has dedicated his career to making a meaningful impact on patient care. As a Clinical Data Engineer, he has spearheaded innovative projects such as the Automated Data Project (ADP), which streamlines data extraction from hospital databases, and the development of machine learning models for various research initiatives. His role also extends to Systems Administration, where he manages data storage, backup protocols, and research apparatus procurement. Eugene is driven by a commitment to bridge the gap between data and healthcare outcomes, collaborating with interdisciplinary teams to shape the future of healthcare through data-driven innovations.
Abder-Rahman Ali, PhD
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Website: https://abder.mgh.harvard.edu
Twitter: https://twitter.com/abderhasan
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drabder/
GitHub: https://github.com/abderhasan
Abder-Rahman Ali, PhD (he/him/his), is a Machine Learning researcher who comes from computer science and software engineering backgrounds. He joined CURT in January 2022. His research involves leveraging machine/deep learning and image processing to improve the diagnosis of liver disease using ultrasound imaging. His interest in medical imaging began during his MSc Software Engineering degree at DePaul University where he worked on content-based image retrieval (CBIR) systems and on bridging the gap between human and computer interpretation of similarity in medical imaging. This was followed by an internship at RWTH Aachen University where he worked on building a joint database for dermoscopic images that would serve as a standard reference for researchers. He then worked as a researcher at Clermont Auvergne University where he conducted research on liver lesion segmentation from MRI and medical ultrasound imaging using fuzzy logic-based techniques. Eventually, he earned his Ph.D in Computing Science from the University of Stirling where he worked on various topics that encompassed the medical image analysis standard pipeline, and were mainly geared towards melanoma detection in particular.
Guangyi Patrick Zhang, PhD
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Guangyi (Patrick) Zhang (he/him/his) joined CURT as a research fellow in AI for liver diseases in September 2023. Prior to this, he delved into language models for cancer vaccines design at the University of Toronto. He earned his Ph.D. in AI from Queen’s University in December 2022, during which he first-authored 10 papers with around 300 citations. Besides, he has served as a reviewer for top-tier AI venues and as an area chair for the AAAI workshop. Beyond the academic achievements, he won the 2nd place in the EPiC’23 Coding Competition.
Niam Abeysiriwardena
Machine Learning Engineer
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Niam (he/him/his) joined CURT in July of 2021 as a Machine Learning Research Engineer. He completed his Bachelor’s degrees in Neuroscience and Computer Science at Lake Forest College in 2020, and his Master’s in Machine Learning at Georgia Tech in 2022. Niam has previously worked on imaging approaches to tracking environmental toxins, and he worked at the wet lab level in developing a yeast model for Parkinson’s Disease as an undergraduate research fellow of the Parkinson’s Foundation. Currently, he specializes in using Machine Learning to develop Gynecological Ultrasound technologies.
Acoustics Team
Marko Jakovljevic, PhD
Acoustics Team Lead at CURT, Instructor
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital
Marko Jakovljevic (he/him/his), an instructor, received his B.S. degree from University of Texas at Austin (2009), and his Ph.D. from Duke University under Dr. Trahey (2015). He worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of Radiology, Stanford School of Medicine under Dr. Dahl until July, 2022, when he joined the Center for Ultrasound Research and Translation at Massachusetts General Hospital. His interests include synthetic aperture and frequency-domain beamforming, and adaptive filters as applied in medical ultrasound. At CURT, he is developing beamforming methods for new opto-acoustic modalities including Non-Contact Laser Ultrasound (NCLUS) in collaboration with the MIT Lincoln Laboratory. He is also actively collaborating with researchers in seismic imaging and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to develop efficient beamforming methods for point-of-care and handheld ultrasound devices.
Yuyang Gu, PhD
Instructor
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Dr. Yuyang Gu (he/him/his) received his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at Duke University, M.S. and B.S. degree in Acoustics at Nanjing University. He joined CURT at MGH/HMS in July 2021 as a Postdoctoral Fellow. He is now an instructor with research focuses on medical ultrasound, shear wave elastography, acoustofluidics, and biomedical micro/nano systems. Dr. Gu has published over 20 articles in journals such as Nature Methods, Nature Communications, Science Advances, ACS Nano, and Lab on a Chip.
Sunethra Dayavansha, PhD
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Sunethra Dayavansha (she/her/hers) joined CURT in March 2021 as a postdoctoral fellow at MGH and a research fellow at HMS. With a Ph.D. in Physics (2018) focused on biomedical and physical acoustics at the University of Mississippi, she is passionate and motivated about collaborating to develop innovative ultrasound imaging technologies for potential clinical applications. In her previous postdoctoral research at university of Cincinnati, she contributed to assess skin elastic properties using high frequency ultrasound and elastography techniques while designing experiments for ultrasound guided ablation monitoring. Currently, she is working on developing signal processing algorithms to improve the performance of ultrasound shear wave elastography for the non-invasive characterization of tissue stiffness in collaboration with clinicians and industrial partners.
Scott Schoen Jr, PhD
Instructor
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Scott Schoen Jr (he/him/his) is an instructor at CURT, prior to which he received his PhD from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, GA, MSE from the University of Texas at Austin, and BS from Tufts University in Medford, MA. Since joining CURT in 2021, Scott has been working on improving the diagnostic utility of ultrasound images through efficient aberration correction and novel applications of ultrasound contrast. His other research interests include super-resolution ultrasound, machine learning, and 2D arrays for volumetric imaging, particularly towards the enhancement of emerging point-of-care ultrasound capabilities.
Ion Candel, PhD
Research Fellow
Department of Radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Ion Candel, PhD., has an applied signal processing background. After obtaining his Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pitesti, Romania, he obtained his Master’s and Doctorate Degrees in Applied Signal Processing from the University of Grenoble Alpes, France in 2010 and 2014 respectively.
He held several positions in both academic establishments and companies, where he was involved in developing innovative signal and data processing algorithms, as well as publishing a series of scientific papers. His research interests include improving the quality of ultrasound images using innovative signal processing techniques, prototyping, as well as translating highly innovative technologies to market.