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
Director, Injury Prevention, Acute Care and Trauma Surgery
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Ms. Allee has active research projects on older adult injuries and risk for injuries, mental health, motor vehicle crash prevention, impaired driving, and substance use disorders. 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 their families, who experience interpersonal violence.
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.
Andrea Geisz, PhD, MS
Laszlo N. Tauber Assistant Professor in Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Dr. Geisz’ research focuses on inflammatory disorders of the pancreas. Her work has centered on intrapancreatic trypsin activation during pancreatitis, and she has generated multiple mouse models to study this problem. Dr. Geisz is currently supported by an R01 grant awarded in 2023 by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Previous support has included a Department of Defense Discovery award, an American Pancreatic Association Young Investigator in Pancreatitis grant, and an American Gastroenterological Association Research Scholar award.
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 was 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.
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.
Daniel Roh, MD, PhD
Attending Surgeon, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Dr. Roh’s research interests are in acute and chronic wound healing processes and pathologic cutaneous scarring, such as hypertrophic scars and keloids. One focus is on senescence, a process by which cells in the body stop dividing but do not die. In 2023, Dr. Roh received the Paul B. Beeson Emerging Leaders Career Development Award in Aging, a five-year $1.2 million grant, from the National Institute on Aging to fund his project, “Targeting Senescence to Improve Wound Healing in Aging.” In addition, Dr. Roh is co-principal investigator (PI) of a four-year, $2 million grant awarded in 2024 by the Hevolution Foundation, which has previously supported his research. Together with co-PI Jeroen Eyckmans, PhD, research assistant professor in Boston University’s College of Engineering, he is investigating the impact of the extracellular matrix (ECM) on impaired wound healing in aging. By utilizing bioengineered microtissues from Dr. Eyckmans’ lab and employing CRISPR gene editing in aging mouse models, they aim to manipulate the wound ECM to enhance injury resiliency and accelerate tissue repair in aging.
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.
Crisanto Torres, MD, MPH
Attending Surgeon, Sections of Acute Care and Trauma Surgery and Surgical Critical Care
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Dr. Torres leads research with profound implications for trauma care and health disparities. Currently, his research is focused on whole blood resuscitation, health disparities in emergency general surgery, and pre-hospital care innovation.
Noelle Saillant, MD, FACS
Chief of Surgical Critical Care and Director of Surgical Intensive Care Unit
Associate Professor of Surgery at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Dr. Saillant’s research interest is in translational research in trauma-induced coagulopathy, deep neural networks, chest wall fixation, and traumatic injury and acute care surgery. She is currently funded through MIT Lincoln Laboratories and the U.S. Army Combat Casualty Care Research Program to develop artificial intelligence to enhance trauma triage and pre-hospital care.