School of Medicine


Showing 361-380 of 422 Results

  • Karl G. Sylvester

    Karl G. Sylvester

    Professor of Surgery (Pediatric Surgery)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsScholarly interests include investigation of molecular markers of human disease that provide diagnostic function, serve as targets for possible therapeutic manipulation, or provide insight into mechanisms of human disease. Specific diseases of interest include common conditions of pregnancy, gut microbial ecology and Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC).

  • Candice N. Thompson, MD

    Candice N. Thompson, MD

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Surgery - General Surgery
    Masters Student in Epidemiology and Clinical Research, admitted Autumn 2023

    BioDr. Thompson is a board-certified, fellowship-trained general surgeon who specializes in breast surgical oncology. She is a clinical assistant professor of surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine and the Medical Director for the Office of Cancer Health Equity.

    Dr. Thompson clinical interests include treatment of women and men who have breast cancer, benign breast disease, genetic mutations, family history of breast cancer, or other breast cancer risk factors. Procedures performed by Dr. Thompson include lumpectomies (partial mastectomies) using oncoplastic techniques and hidden scar methods, skin- and nipple-sparing mastectomies, simple mastectomies with aesthetically flat closure, oncoplastic procedures, benign breast lesion excisions, axillary node dissections, and sentinel lymph node biopsies.

    She completed a breast surgical oncology fellowship at Stanford University under the mentorship of one of the world’s foremost experts in the field. She completed her general surgery training at Georgetown University, where she was the co-administrative chief resident. She is passionate about equitable care and addressing healthcare disparities, especially in breast cancer.

    Dr. Thompson works closely with medical oncology, radiation oncology, plastic surgery, genetics, and other breast cancer specialists in a multidisciplinary setting to provide high quality, evidence-based, and individualized care. Dr. Thompson is a strong advocate for patient education and empowerment and strives to deliver compassionate care to patients and their families.

    Her research has focused on Nipple Sparing Mastectomies, Community Engagement for Breast Cancer in the Black Community, Immune responses during breast cancer treatment, and prognostic role of Circulating Tumor DNA (ctDNA) in the management of breast cancer. She also has strong research interests in community engagement, health disparities, oncoplastic surgical options, and cancer biomarkers. She has delivered presentations on a wide range of topics related to breast cancer at national and regional meetings including NRG Oncology, ASBrS, ASC.

    For her scholarship and research achievements, Dr. Thompson has won numerous honors and awards. She has earned the resident teaching award during her chief year at Georgetown. She was awarded the Stanford Cancer Institute Clinical Innovation Fund Grant for her work in educating the Black Community about Breast Health and Breast Cancer (2022). She was also awarded the prestigious NCI Early-Surgeon Scientist Program (ESSP) Award to support her early career as a surgeon scientist(2024). She also serves on the AAS Academic Advancement Committee, NRG Oncology Surgical Oncology Committee, NCCN Breast Screening and Diagnosis Panel, and TOUCH Black Breast Advisor for Pink Table Talk.


    Dr. Thompson is a member of the American College of Surgeons (ACS), American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS), Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO), Society of Black Academic Surgeons (SBAS), Association of Women Surgeons (AWS), National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®), and American Medical Association (AMA).

    Outside of work, Dr. Thompson enjoys pilates, tennis, baking, sewing, wine tasting, and traveling.

  • Antonio Tomasso

    Antonio Tomasso

    Postdoctoral Scholar, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

    BioAntonio Tomasso is an NWO Rubicon Postdoctoral Scholar. As part of his MSc in Medical Molecular and Cellular Biotechnology at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, he explored the immunomodulatory and neurotrophic roles of neural stem cells (NSCs) following spinal cord injury. As a Research Assistant at Karolinska Institute, he delved into the signaling pathways required for NSC activation and migration after spinal cord injury, and the limited regenerative abilities of mouse and human heart.

    During his PhD, he investigated the molecular mechanisms of tissue regeneration in planarians, axolotls and spiny mice. He conducted research as a Visiting Fellow at the University of Kentucky and the Hubrecht Institute.
    His research demonstrated that MAPK/ERK signaling acts as a molecular switch between regeneration and fibrosis in adult mammals and can be activated to stimulate a regenerative response, including new hair follicle formation, in scarring wounds.
    He contributed to a pioneering study showing that spiny mice can recover heart function after infarct through enhanced angiogenesis, ECM remodeling and epicardium regeneration. He also played a key role in spatial transcriptomic studies that defined regenerative and fibrotic gene signatures in spiny mice, laboratory mice and gerbils.
    He earned a PhD cum laude in Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine.

    He has been awarded an NWO Dutch Research Council Rubicon Postdoctoral grant to conduct research on the molecular drivers of fibroblast activation in wound healing and organ fibrosis.
    His ultimate research aim is to crack the code of tissue regeneration and rejuvenation, reversing organ scarring and preventing fibrosis in injuries and pathological conditions, through the identification of therapeutic targets for enhanced tissue repair and functional recovery.

    Driven by his innate curiosity and passion for science, he loves tackling new challenges, thinking outside the box, and building interdisciplinary collaborations to push forward the boundaries of knowledge.

    His career goal is to serve as a group leader, committed to DIBEJ, fostering a collaborative environment where everyone can thrive, achieve their goals and leave a lasting impact through community-building and scientific discoveries for the benefit of humankind.

  • Kenneth Tran, MD

    Kenneth Tran, MD

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Surgery - Vascular Surgery

    BioDr. Tran is a vascular surgeon in the Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Division at Stanford Health Care. He is also a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular Surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine.

    Dr. Tran’s clinical expertise includes the entire spectrum of vascular surgery, including minimally invasive strategies for aortic aneurysm repair and multiple methods of managing peripheral vascular disease. He also specializes in treating cerebrovascular disease (problems with blood flow in the brain) using carotid angioplasty and stenting, transcarotid artery revascularization, and conventional carotid surgery. In addition, Dr. Tran offers comprehensive dialysis access management and treats venous reflux (when leg veins fail to return blood to the heart).

    Dr. Tran has a special interest in minimally invasive techniques for repairing complex aortic conditions using custom stents placed inside blood vessels (endografts). He has expertise in designing, fabricating, and implanting physician-modified endografts tailor-made to each patient’s unique aortic anatomy. This technique expands the ability to offer minimally invasive repair to more patients.

    Dr. Tran’s research efforts focus on utilizing novel computational approaches to better understand and optimize blood flow patterns after complex aortic repair. This work has helped improve the understanding of how different types of aneurysm repair perform long term. Dr. Tran hopes to use these research findings to improve clinical outcomes for patients with aortic aneurysmal disease.

    Dr. Tran has published his work in numerous prestigious peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Vascular Surgery, JAMA Surgery, and the European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery. He has presented at the podium at numerous national and international conferences.

    Dr. Tran has received multiple research awards, including the Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Society’s Medtronic Resident Research Award and Best Resident Presentation at the Swiss Society for Vascular Diseases. In addition, he received the Young Researcher Prize at the European Symposium on Vascular Biomaterials for his research related to complex aortic repair hemodynamics (blood flow). Dr. Tran also coauthored a chapter in the book Complications in Endovascular Surgery.