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Current Resident Biographies
Elio Adib – Elio was born in Byblos, a coastal city in Lebanon. He studied Physics at the American University of Beirut before attending medical school at the same institution. After graduation, he moved to Boston to work as a postdoctoral research fellow at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His research work focused on the interplay between germline/somatic variants and cancer progression and response to therapy. Outside of work, Elio enjoys cooking his favorite Lebanese dishes, spending time with friends and family and exploring the salsa dancing scene in Boston.
Mina Bakhtiar – Mina grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and attended Macalester College, where she studied Political Science and Economics. After graduating, she worked at the National Academy of Medicine, researching health policy topics including value-based payments and accountable care organizations. While living in DC, Mina also volunteered with healthcare organizations including a hospice and a street-based syringe exchange at the start of the opioid epidemic. Mina completed the post-baccalaureate premedical program at Johns Hopkins University in 2017 and attended the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. As a medical student, she completed a number of clinical research projects, including on the use of proton beam therapy in palliative radiation. Mina completed her preliminary year in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, running, traveling, live music, and trying new recipes and restaurants.
Leou Ismael Banla – Prior to joining HROP, Ismael earned an MD/Ph.D. with a focus in microbiology, studying Enterococcus faecalis as a model of intestinal colonization. He explored the genetics of this relatively understudied bacterium with limited genetic tools to answer questions relevant to the establishment of microbial communities in the GI tract. Ismael remains interested in basic science with strong translational potential. His current interests are in the use of innovative methods to optimize the precision of drug delivery to cancer cells. From antibody-drug conjugates that leverage surface proteins to the development of methods for in-vivo drug activation, Ismael is interested in improving the precision of anti-cancer therapeutics to minimize off target effects. Outside of his clinical work and research, he enjoys running, cooking, and listening to podcasts.
Abrar Choudhury – Abrar was born and raised in the Bay Area in sunny California. His first foray to the East Coast was as an undergraduate at Princeton University, where he majored in Molecular Biology. After college, he joined the MD/PhD program at UCSF. He earned his PhD in Biomedical Sciences in David Raleigh’s lab, where he studied the biologic drivers and therapeutic vulnerabilities of meningiomas. After medical school, he spent one more year in San Francisco, completing his preliminary internship in Internal Medicine at Kaiser Permanente San Francisco. He is excited to join the HROP community and continue his physician-scientist journey. Outside of work, Abrar enjoys crossword puzzles (both solving and creating!), trying new restaurants, and hiking. He is looking forward to exploring everything Boston has to offer!
Zoe Cosner – Zoe was born and raised in Miami, Florida. She attended University of Miami for undergraduate where she double majored in Biochemistry and Mathematics. She studied abroad at Charles University in Prague where she focused on her minor in Art History. She pursued her medical education at Johns Hopkins Medical Institute. As a medical student she was awarded with an endowed fund for medical student cancer research to pursue a research year studying the role of telomere length disorders in cancer predisposition. She also spent her research year creating and implementing a virtual elective in equitable healthcare for fourth year medical students. She completed her preliminary intern year at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, MD. Her hobbies include baking, hiking, swimming, travel, and art.
Sayeh Fattahi – Sayeh was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she attended a French school from kindergarten through 12th grade. She then studied Biology and French Literature at Stanford University, where she also pursued health policy research between finishing her undergraduate studies and starting medical school. She received her MD from the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, where she discovered her passion for radiation oncology and focused her research on breast cancer and ocular melanoma. Prior to HROP, she completed her intern year at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center. Outside of work, Sayeh enjoys traveling, trying new foods, and most importantly, petting every dog she meets along the way!
Carla Fitch – Carla was born and raised in Southern California, and attended college at Walla Walla University in Washington state, where she studied Religion with minors in Biology and Chemistry. She moved back home for medical school at Loma Linda University, where she quickly fell in love with Radiation Oncology. She has worked on a number of different research projects in basic science, cancer biology, and clinical research, but the most rewarding project she has done was developing and analyzing the efficacy of a novel method of integrating Social Determinants of Health education into her medical school’s curriculum. She is excited to continue learning from and about her patients as she starts her training at HROP. Outside of medicine, Carla is an avid reader and enjoys weightlifting, yoga, and exploring new coffee shops and restaurants with her husband and their dog, Frankie.
Thomas Howard – Tom was born and raised in the Boston area, and he is a proud graduate of North Attleboro High School. He moved just slightly south to attend Yale, where he graduated with a BS and MS in Biology while studying plant genetics. He returned to Boston to enroll in the Harvard-MIT MD/PhD program, where his doctoral studies focused on identifying new therapies for rhabdoid tumors, a rare but devastating pediatric cancer. Tom is most proud of his time teaching and mentoring students in the classroom, lab, and clinic. He completed an internship in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital prior to joining HROP. Outside of work, Tom enjoys exploring the outdoors in and around Boston with his wife, Tara, and rescue dog, Stella. He is an avid Boston sports fan, and an amateur but aspiring birdwatcher.
Emerson Lee – Emerson was born and raised in Kansas City, MO. He studied Neurobiology at Harvard College before moving south to Baltimore for medical school at Johns Hopkins. There, he was initially interested in the intersection between geriatric medicine and palliative care before pivoting to radiation oncology, receiving an endowed cancer research fellowship and spending a research year on biomarkers in prostate cancer, CNS metastases, and radiomics. He returned to Boston for an intern year in internal medicine at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and is excited to continue his training at HROP! In his free time, he enjoys trying new restaurants, kayaking on the Charles, cheering on the Celtics, and perusing Zillow listings.
Grace Lee – Grace is originally from Pohang, South Korea. She moved to State College, Pennsylvania in middle school with her two sisters. She studied Biochemistry at Penn State University and then moved to Boston to attend Harvard Medical School. She finished her prelim internal medicine intern year at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and is looking forward to finally joining HROP! Fun fact: She lives with her younger sister who is a nurse, and she loves spending time with her two nephews 2 and 4 years old.
Amandeep Mahal – Aman was born and raised in Fresno, California. His upbringing taught him the importance of community and instilled within him the drive to create change, which ultimately led him to a career in medicine. He attended UCLA for his undergraduate studies, Yale for medical school, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for internship. He is thrilled to join the HROP family—a brilliant and diverse group that is committed to improving the quality of life for patients with cancer. While not in the hospital, I enjoy being outdoors, exploring new restaurants, dancing, traveling, fitness, and anything tech related.
Elie Mehanna – Elie was born and raised in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon before moving to Boston, Massachusetts. He earned his MD from Harvard Medical School and completed his internship in Internal Medicine at MGH. He enjoys playing with his goldendoodle puppy called Lemon, who’s as goofy as the name implies.
Javier Mora – Javier was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to blue-collar, Mexican immigrant parents. He graduated summa cum laude from Marquette University where he majored in biomedical sciences. After earning his undergraduate degree, Javier worked as a clinical research assistant in an NIH-funded consortium study investigating the use of pediatric patient-reported outcomes measures to better understand the well-being of children with sickle cell disease, Type 1 diabetes, and asthma. Javier then received his medical doctorate (M.D.) degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he was involved in Black and Latino community outreach, pre-medical mentorship, medical Spanish curricular programming, and research in ZIP-code based disparities in pancreatic cancer. Javier completed his transitional year internship at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin before joining HROP. In his free time, Javier enjoys watching NBA and FIFA World Cup games, participating in trivia, and exploring new restaurants.
Acacia Mouzakitis – Acacia (Caci) Mouzakitis grew up in Dexter, Michigan and completed her undergraduate degree in Biophysics at the University of Michigan. She then moved to Milwaukee to join the MD-PhD program at the Medical College of Wisconsin. She completed her PhD in the laboratory of Dr. Brian Volkman studying structure-function relationships of chemokine proteins with a focus on metamorphic, or shape-shifting, proteins. She stayed in Milwaukee to complete her intern year at Aurora St. Luke’s Medical Center before moving to Boston to join HROP. Outside of work, she enjoys running, bicycling, hiking, swimming, and reading novels.
Shane Neibart – Shane grew up in Morristown, New Jersey before attending Duke University to study biomedical engineering. After graduation, he worked at NYU in a stem cell biology and regenerative medicine laboratory before matriculating at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School as a Chancellor’s Global Health Scholar. There he developed his passions for developing cervical cancer prevention strategies, exploring cancer epidemiology, and investigating drug-radiation interactions. After medical school, Shane moved to Boston to complete his preliminary year in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital before joining the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program. Outside of the hospital, Shane enjoys spending time with his wife (a surgery resident at MGH) and daughter, fishing, and hiking.
Akshat Patel – Akshat grew up in Houston, Texas and attended Rice University, studying Sociology and Biochemistry as well as volunteering with Camp Kesem, a camp for children whose families have been affected by cancer. He then went to UT Southwestern Medical School where he was involved in a variety of clinical research projects focusing on lymphoma, GU cancers, and health disparities. Before joining HROP, he did his internship at Memorial Sloan Kettering, where he further developed his passion for holistically caring for cancer patients (so he is very excited to begin his radiation oncology training!). Outside of work, he enjoys reading literary fiction and sci-fi/fantasy novels, playing pickleball and basketball, hosting dinner/cocktail parties, and hiking.
Palak Patel – Palak was born and raised in Fort Pierce, FL. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida (Go Gators!) with a major in Microbiology & Cell Science and minors in Theatre and Arts in Medicine. She then moved to Baltimore to attend Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. As a medical student, she fell in love with Radiation Oncology and conducted research in spinal SBRT, pediatric neurocognitive outcomes, and improving patient anxiety through the arts. She completed her preliminary internal medicine training at Mercy Medical Center. She loves traveling, fitness, trying new restaurants, poetry, fashion, and spending quality time with her family and friends.
Daniel Rosen – Daniel grew up in Los Angeles and attended UC Berkeley for undergrad. He completed an MD-PhD at Weill Cornell Medicine and the Rockefeller University. During his PhD, he studied immunology and DNA repair, specifically focusing on double strand break formation and repair in immunoglobulin class switch recombination. Fun fact: He rode out the pandemic in Hawaii, where he just finished a preliminary year in medicine in Honolulu. During this year he didn’t cut his hair for 8 months and learned how to surf — poorly. Aloha!
Nadia Saeed – Nadia grew up in Tampa, Florida and received her BA in Classics from Brown University. She developed a strong interest in radiation oncology while working at Moffitt Cancer Center, where she conducted clinical research on gastrointestinal malignancies and collaborated on a number of patient and medical education projects. She attended Yale for medical school during which time she completed a research year focused on hypofractionated radiation for small cell and non-small cell lung cancer and examined the impact of physician attitudes in radiation oncology decision making. Nadia completed her transitional year internship at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital prior to joining the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program. In her free time, she enjoys reading, hiking, baking, watching movies, gardening, and playing golf.
Leah Thompson – Leah was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. She attended Amherst College, where she majored in History, writing her thesis on end-of-life care in her home state before and after the legalization of physician-assisted death. After graduation, she stayed on the East Coast at Harvard Medical School, where she fell in love with the longitudinal relationships, varied treatment opportunities, and spatial challenges offered by Radiation Oncology. She completed a preliminary internship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and looks forward to joining the HROP community! Outside of the hospital, she enjoys running, skiing, and singing.
Tyler Walburn – Tyler grew up in Hershey, Pennsylvania also known as “The Sweetest Place on Earth.” After developing many cavities as a child, he went to college in Pittsburgh where he became a Yinzer and die-hard Steelers fan. He then moved down south to North Carolina for medical school and better BBQ. During intern year, he lived in Utah where he spent much of his time exploring the mountains with his wife, Shayna. He enjoys powerlifting, eating, hiking, traveling, meditation, volleyball, and all pets.
Amy Wisdom – Amy was born in San Diego and grew up in Northern California. She moved to Los Angeles to attend UCLA, where she majored in neuroscience and studied mechanisms of central nervous system inflammation in multiple sclerosis. After college, she joined the Duke MD-PhD program. She earned her PhD in Molecular Cancer Biology in David Kirsch’s laboratory, where she developed novel genetically engineered mouse models of cancer and used these models to study immune-mediated resistance to radiation therapy and immunotherapy in cancer. Amy completed her transitional year internship at Cambridge Health Alliance prior to joining the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program. She looks forward to caring for cancer patients and continuing her research as a physician-scientist. In her free time, she enjoys downhill skiing, baking pastries, running with her dog, and learning to sail.
Jennifer Zagelbaum – Jen, a native New Yorker, went to CUNY Hunter College where she studied biology and women and gender studies. During this time, she worked in the Eli Rothenberg lab at NYU, where she used super resolution microscopy to study the intricacies of DNA damage repair. Wishing to follow her passions for both clinical oncology and cancer genetics, she obtained her M.D./Ph.D. at Columbia University. Her thesis project in Jean Gautier’s lab used genomic approaches to analyze the formation of chromosome translocations. Before coming to HROP, she did her transitional year at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. During residency she looks forward to continuing her journey towards becoming a physician scientist in the field of genome integrity. In her free time, she enjoys reading, running, and going on adventures with her wife and dogs, Benji and Mister.
Johnathan Zeng – John was born in Lexington, KY, and his family currently lives in Jersey City, NJ. He attended the University of Pennsylvania as a Rachleff Scholar, where he received a B.S.E. in bioengineering. After college, he received a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct public health research at Sichuan University in Southwest China. During medical school, he completed a research year at the National Institutes of Health in the Medical Research Scholars Program. Before joining the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program, he completed his preliminary medicine internship at Mount Auburn Hospital. Outside of the hospital he enjoys taking walks with his family. He also enjoys traveling the world, learning languages, watching college basketball, and playing keyboard and guitar.
Lin Zhu – Lin Zhu grew up in North Haven, CT and attended Wellesley College. She completed her MD/PhD at Baylor College of Medicine and her transitional year internship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Fun fact: She has a dog named Pickles!
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