Third-year general surgery resident Devashish Joshi, MD, was recently awarded a one-year, $75,000 fellowship from the National Cancer Institute under their Ruth L. Kirschstein Postdoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (NRSA) program. The goal of this program is to enhance the research training of postdoctoral trainees who have the potential to become productive, independent investigators.
Dr. Joshi is using this research funding to study a form of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A common way to treat HCC is to remove the portion of the liver that contains tumors. However, the success of this procedure depends on how well the liver is functioning; while a liver that is functioning properly will be able to grow new tissue and repair itself after surgery, a poorly functioning liver may not have this ability. Working with his mentor, Scott Reeder, MD, PhD, Dr. Joshi will use an animal model to look at whether using an MRI to measure blood flow to the liver can be used to predict how well the liver is functioning and its ability to re-grow after a portion of the liver is removed. Dr. Reeder is the Fred Lee Sr. Endowed Chair of Radiology and Director of the UW Liver Imaging Research Program, and an expert in using imaging methods to assess liver disease.
“I’m incredibly honored to receive a postdoctoral fellowship from the National Cancer Institute,” said Joshi. “It truly speaks to the incredible mentorship I’ve received from both Dr. Reeder and Dr. Sharon Weber in the Division of Surgical Oncology. This research award will be an incredible stepping stone to help me pursue my goal of becoming an academic surgeon-scientist.” In addition to advancing Dr. Joshi’s research training, the knowledge gained from this study will help surgeons better understand how blood flow relates to liver function and re-growth. This information can then guide future research in humans, which could ultimately lead to improved clinical decision-making.
Congratulations on your research award, Dr. Joshi!