With the fear that her children might never hear her voice again, Laurie recorded herself singing lullabies before going into surgery just days after her diagnosis.

Advanced monitoring during surgery to remove thyroid cancer helped avoid risks to Laurie’s vocal nerve

As a mother of three young children with a busy academic career at Emmanuel College, Laurie Johnston, PhD, was blindsided when her doctor discovered a lump in her neck during a routine physical in July 2012. Within a week, she underwent a thyroid ultrasound and biopsy, which confirmed her doctor’s suspicion of thyroid cancer.

Although she barely had time to comprehend the gravity of her diagnosis, Laurie was determined to find the best care team available for her case. She contacted Gerard Doherty, MD, chief of surgery at Boston Medical Center, on the recommendation of her sister-in-law,
who works in the medical field.

Read more about Laurie’s story in Boston Medical Center’s Inspire Newsletter

Tony E. Godfrey, PhD, Associate Chair, Surgical Research and Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, earned a bachelor’s of science degree in biochemistry from Brunel University in England, followed by a doctorate in molecular biology and biochemistry, also from Brunel. He attended the University of California, San Francisco, for postdoctoral fellowships and managed UCSF’s Genome Analysis Core Facility.

Most recently, Dr. Godfrey was a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY. Prior to this he was an Associate Professor of Pathology at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York, NY.

Dr. Godfrey’s research is focused on cancer genetics and molecular pathology. Research projects use state-of-the-art genetic and genomic approaches to address clinical needs in the areas of cancer diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. Currently the major focus of Dr. Godfrey’s research is on Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma; a tumor with rapidly increasing incidence in the United States and other western countries. The Godfrey lab works closely with translational research teams comprised of surgeons, pathologists and oncologists in order to develop new molecular approaches to cancer detection, staging and treatment.

Virginia R. Litle, MD
Division of Thoracic Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine

Virginia Litle, MD, Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, is a graduate of the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT and received her medical degree from the Brown-Dartmouth Program in Medicine in Providence, RI. Dr. Litle completed her residency in general surgery at the University of California in San Francisco, CA and completed fellowships in both Surgical Oncology and Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, PA.

Most recently, Dr. Litle was an Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY. At BMC/BUSM, Dr. Litle will be Director of the Barrett’s Esophagus Program and Director of Thoracic Clinical Research.

Dr. Litle’s clinical interests include management of benign and malignant esophageal diseases including Barrett’s esophagus, achalasia and esophageal cancer, minimally invasive esophageal surgery and endoscopic procedures including minimally invasive esophagectomy, endoscopic resection and Barrx ablation of Barrett’s esophagus. Dr. Litle also offers VATS lobectomy for lung cancer, airway and esophageal stenting and laser treatment for palliation of lung and esophagus cancer.

Gregory A. Antoine MD, MBA, FACS, Chief, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Boston Medical Center and Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University School of Medicine, was recently part of a National Medical Association (NMA) delegation that traveled to Liberia to meet with Liberia’s president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf as well as Liberia’s minister of health, Walter T. Gwenigale, MD.

Dr. Antoine, who serves on the Board of Trustees of the NMA, assisted in the evaluation of Liberia’s healthcare system and played an intricate role as part of the NMA group assisting in the rebuilding of the healthcare system in Liberia after a 14-year civil war that devastated the country’s healthcare infrastructure.

National Medical Association (NMA) delegation that traveled to Liberia

About the NMA

The mission of the NMA is to advance the art and science of medicine for people of African descent through education, advocacy, and health policy to promote health and wellness, eliminate health disparities, and sustain physician viability. The National Medical Association represents the interests of more than 30,000 African American physicians and the patients they serve, with nearly 129 affiliated societies throughout the nation and U.S. territories.

Peter Burke, MD (Surgery)

Gerard Doherty, MD (Surgery)

Michael Ebright, MD (Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery)

Alik Farber, MD (Vascular Surgery)

Hiran Fernando, MBBS, FRCS (Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery)

Donald Hess Jr., MD (Surgery)

Maureen Kavanah, MD (Surgery)

Harold Lazar, MD (Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery)

David McAneny, MD (Surgery)

Stephen Sentovich, MD (Colon and Rectal Surgery)

Michael Stone, MD (Surgery)

David McAneny, MD

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