Faculty Research Interests

Our faculty are dedicated to conducting research that contributes to discoveries at the molecular level as well as to advances in delivery of care and patient outcomes. This includes research related to trauma and surgical critical care, sepsis, surgical and endocrine oncology, wound healing, and abdominal wall reconstruction. Research is multidisciplinary and includes investigators with specialties in surgery, medicine, physiology, pathology, biochemistry, immunology, microbiology, and molecular biology. In addition, there is a strong focus on research examining racial and socioeconomic disparities in care. 

A partial list of research interests in the Department of Surgery follows. 

Lisa Allee, MSW, LICSW
Director, Community Violence Response Team (CVRT), Boston Medical Center
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Ms. Allee’s research interests include violence-related injury and epidemiology, older adult falls, and motor vehicle crash prevention as well as impaired driving, child passenger safety, and infant mortality related to sleeping habits. Through her research and publications in multiple peer-reviewed journals and numerous regional and national presentations, she has expanded Boston Medical Center’s reputation as a leader in trauma-informed care for victims and families who experience interpersonal violence. She also holds the position of Director of Programs and Education for the Injury Prevention Center and is a member of the New England Injury and Violence Prevention Research Collaborative.

Tracey Dechert, MD, FACS
Chief of Acute Care and Trauma Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Dechert’s research interests include trauma in women, injury prevention, and surgical education. Additionally, Dr. Dechert is interested in quality improvement in the critical care setting and has played an active role in improving the outcomes of critically injured patients.

F. Thurston Drake, MD, MPH
Chief of Endocrine Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Drake’s research interests include improving treatment and outcomes for appendicitis and other common surgical diseases, system-wide approaches to improve management of incidental radiographic findings, innovations in surgical education, improving access to surgical care, and assessing the potential impact of language barriers on surgical outcomes. Dr. Drake was the lead author on an influential study published in JAMA Surgery in 2020 that investigated epidemiologic patterns in the incidence of appendicitis. The first population-based study of adult appendicitis since the early 1990s, it found that acute appendicitis incidence is geographically distinct and associated with lower socioeconomic status, further highlighting the importance of social determinants of health in surgical care.

Alik Farber, MD, MBA
Interim Chief, Department of Surgery and Chief of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Boston Medical Center
Interim Chair of Surgery and Professor of Surgery and Radiology, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Farber leads a multidisciplinary clinical research unit based in the Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery. The mission of the BMC Vascular Research Consortium is to improve the care of patients with vascular disease through innovative research. Recent research endeavors stemming from the consortium have included projects involving aortic aneurysms, venous disease, carotid disease, and vascular trauma. Dr. Farber’s specific research interests include peripheral arterial disease and dialysis access. He is a principal investigator for the BEST-CLI (Best Endovascular versus Best Surgical Therapy in Patients with Critical Limb Ischemia) trial, an international, randomized multicenter controlled trial comparing clinical efficacy, functional outcomes, and cost effectiveness of surgical leg bypass with the less invasive alternative of endovascular therapy for patients with critical limb ischemia. Results from the trial were published in The New England Journal of Medicine in December 2022.

Tony Godfrey, PhD
Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Godfrey’s research centers 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. One focus of Dr. Godfrey’s research is 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 to develop new molecular approaches to cancer detection, staging, and treatment.

Jeffrey Kalish, MD, FACS
Attending Surgeon, Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery and Radiology, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Kalish’s clinical focus and research interests include complex amputation and limb salvage surgery, totally percutaneous endovascular aortic aneurysm repair, diabetic foot management and lower extremity revascularization, and dialysis access. Dr. Kalish created a Multidisciplinary Amputation Program at Boston Medical Center based on the lessons he learned from his extensive involvement with the Boston Marathon bombing survivors and his Society for Vascular Surgery Traveling Fellowship project. The fellowship involved visiting military centers that specialize in the treatment and rehabilitation of amputees with the goal of translating military best practices to the civilian medical establishment.

Kelly Kenzik, PhD, MS
Associate Chair of Research, Department of Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Kenzik’s background in epidemiology, health services research, patient-reported outcomes, and latent variable and structural equation modeling provides the foundation for evaluating the complex effects of cancer on highly vulnerable populations (e.g., aging, rural, low-income). One focus of her work is examining the long-term trajectories of healthcare use and the associated economic burden and financial hardship among the rapidly expanding older cancer survivor population in the context of adherence to standardized healthcare recommendations. Another area of interest is examining the underlying causes of rural versus urban disparities in mortality among cancer patients. Dr. Kenzik is currently funded by the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute.

Luise Pernar, MD, MHPE
Attending Surgeon, Section of Minimally Invasive and Weight Loss Surgery, Boston Medical Center
Associate Professor of Surgery at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Pernar’s primary research interest is in surgical education. Using quantitative as well as qualitative research practices, she is investigating skill development, intra-operative teaching, technical skill assessment, and mechanisms underlying resident attrition. In addition, Dr. Pernar is involved in clinical research projects relevant to the surgical care of patients with morbid obesity. Projects include the impact of morbid obesity on outcomes after ventral hernia repair, weight regain after weight loss surgery, and prevention of thromboembolic events following weight loss surgery.

Podiatry Surgery
The primary goal of research in the Division of Podiatry Surgery is to prevent major amputation in patients with diabetic foot ulcers. Faculty in the division receive many grants to conduct industry-sponsored trials, and faculty and residents conduct investigator-initiated research projects. Learn more.

Teviah Sachs, MD, MPH
Chief of Surgical Oncology, Boston Medical Center
Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Sachs’ research focuses on assessing outcomes of patients with upper gastrointestinal and soft tissue malignancies. Other areas of interest include surgical education and disparities in surgical care.

Sabrina Sanchez, MD, MPH
Attending Surgeon, Sections of Acute Care and Trauma Surgery and Surgical Critical Care, Boston Medical Center
Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Sanchez’ research interests include long-term quality of life after trauma, as well as evaluating and mitigating the effects of social determinants of health on vulnerable populations and promoting patient-centered care and shared decision-making in surgery. 

Dane Scantling, DO, MPH
Attending Surgeon, Sections of Acute Care and Trauma Surgery and Surgical Critical Care, Boston Medical Center
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

An avid clinical researcher, Dr. Scantling is pursuing innovative research in health disparities and access to life-saving trauma care. His interests include firearm violence, trauma systems, and access to trauma care. Dr. Scantling has published more than 50 peer-reviewed papers and has presented his work locally, nationally, and internationally.

Jeffrey J. Siracuse, MD, MBA, RPVI, FACS
Attending Surgeon, Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery
Professor of Surgery and Radiology, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Dr. Siracuse has served as a principal investigator on a large number of research projects, with a strong record of external support from the NIH and industry. One area of focus is quality improvement at the national, regional, and institutional levels. He was recently appointed as the Boston Medical Center Surgeon Champion for the American College of Surgeons’ National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. As the Medical Director of the Vascular Study Group of New England, he oversees quality initiatives and the awarding of grants. Dr. Siracuse is the author of more than 180 peer-reviewed journal articles and has mentored numerous students and trainees, leading to more than 25 first-author publications.

.

Share this: