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Four VTCSOM students, Luma Abunimer, Macy Marcucci, Satya Vedula, and Sarah Yosief, became inaugural Aequitas Health Honor Society Fellows, dedicated to health equity and eliminating disparities. Their study evaluated interpreter effectiveness in a hospital, aiming to improve patient satisfaction and understanding.

What is a “brain freeze,” and how can we enjoy a refreshingly cold treat without having to endure one? Virginia Tech neuroscientist Kristofer Rau explains the science beyond these quick-onset headaches and how to avoid them — or at least make them go away faster.

“The M.D./Ph.D. has to be something you are really passionate about to commit so much of your life to it. But I can’t envision a career for myself without research in medicine.” Oscar matched in anesthesiology with Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School.

Congratulations to Sahana Nazeer, soon to be VTCSOM graduate! As class president, Sahana has been a driving force for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives at VTCSOM. Her research project on quantifying trust between people with borderline personality disorder and their loved ones shows her commitment to improving patient care.

“There are so many places where the physician voice can make a meaningful difference.” Danny Avula, the commissioner of the Virginia Department of Social Services, will speak at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine commencement on May 6 in Roanoke.

Religion is one of the topics that no polite person should bring up at a dinner party, but we're bringing it up at DIBS. Join us on April 11 for Ruining Dinner: Religion as the Silent Diversity. Part of the VTCSOM Diversity Inclusion and Belonging Series.

“Dr. Johnson was a very effective leader as interim chair, and I am delighted that he will have the opportunity to build on that momentum during a period of increasing opportunity,” said Lee Learman, dean of the medical school.

Medical students honor Sarah Parker with 2023 Research Mentor of the Year Award. “To have been selected by students is a terrific honor for me because getting to work with students is one of my favorite things about my job,” said Parker. One of her students said “Dr. Parker has taught me how to turn curiosity into an evidence-based question and then transform that question into a hypothesis that is tested by a well-designed project.”

Maya Langman, a fourth-year student at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, has conducted research on the use of histotripsy, a noninvasive, focused ultrasound therapy, for the treatment of brain cancer. Maya will present her research on Friday during the Medical Student Research Symposium.

Katie Brow, a fourth-year student at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (VTCSOM), has conducted research to identify the barriers to delivering a successful lifestyle modification program for overweight survivors of endometrial cancer. “I’ve always been interested in how to close the gap between research and its actual impact on the community, what is known as implementation science,” Brow said. “I’ve also had an interest in women’s health, so being able to merge these two interests was a match made in heaven.”

Today we feature Katie Hardin whose research project focused on calcium deposits in the cardiac intercalated disc and could pave the way for preventing lethal arrhythmias in the future. She will present her findings at VTCSOM's annual Medical Student Research Symposium.

Ellen Shrontz's research on gap junctions at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine has the potential to impact human disease states like arrhythmias and metastatic disease. She will present her work at the annual Medical Student Research Symposium on March 24.

Katelyn Stebbins, a third-year M.D.-Ph.D. student who studies how the brain decodes visual signals, was accepted into the Early Career Policy Ambassadors Program for the Society for Neuroscience and will visit lawmakers on Monday, March 6, to explain the importance of brain research during the Society’s annual Capitol Hill Day in Washington, D.C.

ARTiculation: Creativity in Medicine is a publication of creative works by students, faculty, and staff of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. Included within are paintings, photography, poetry, essays, and more. Volume three is now live.

Thank you to the 45 faculty members from 9 clinical rotations who received commendations from our students between September - December 2022! Use this link to read about them and to submit your own great teaching experience.

Join us for this lecture featuring Joy Wu, MD, PhD. Osteoblasts and their progenitors play an important role in the support of hematopoiesis within the bone marrow microenvironment. From mesenchymal stem cells to fully mature osteoblasts, cells at each stage of differentiation play unique roles in supporting hematopoietic development. Dr. Wu and her lab have reported that in mice parathyroid hormone receptor (PTH1R) signaling in osteoprogenitors is required for normal B cell precursor differentiation, and for trafficking of maturing B cells out of the bone marrow.

Get in the game and make a difference! Our goal for VTCSOM is to reach 155 donors & raise more than $100,000 for medical scholarships. Giving Day runs from noon on February 15 through noon February 16.