Current Fellows

Elizabeth Behrens Conner, M.D.

Hometown: Newburgh, IN

Medical School: University of Kentucky College of Medicine

IM Residency: Rush University, Chicago, IL

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  The people! Especially my co-fellows

Research and Career Interests:  GI Oncology

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Warrior S, Behrens E, Thomas J, Gezer S, Venugopal P, Jain S. Prevention of Thromboembolic Events in Patients with COVID-19. TH Open. 2021 Aug 2;5(3):e415-e419. doi: 10.1055/a-1576-6201. PMID: 34595386; PMCID: PMC8463134.
• Myint ZW, McCormick J, Chauhan A, Behrens E, Anthony LB. Management of Diffuse Idiopathic Pulmonary Neuroendocrine Cell Hyperplasia: Review and a Single Center Experience. Lung. 2018 Oct;196(5):577-581. doi: 10.1007/s00408-018-0149-z. Epub 2018 Aug 25. PMID: 30167840.
• Rajendran S, Behrens E, Pawley B. Catastrophic cerebral hemorrhage and edema in a patient with pneumococcal meningitis. Clinical Imaging. 2018 Nov-Dec;52:302-304. doi: 10.1016/j.clinimag.2018.07.016. Epub 2018 Jul 24. PMID: 30216857.
• Bennett R, Behrens E, Zinn A, Duncheon C, and Lamkin TJ “Mustard gas surrogate, 2-chloroethyl ethylsulfide (2-CEES), induces centrosome amplification and aneuploidy in human and mouse cells: 2-CEES induces centrosome amplification and chromosome instability” Cell Biology and Toxicology. 2014. Aug 30;(4):195-205. PMID: 24894427.

Hobbies: Scuba diving, any/all beach activities, traveling

Kaitlyn Dykes, M.D.

Hometown: Byron, MN

Medical School: Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University

IM Residency: MedStar Georgetown University, Washington, DC

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  Learning how to take care of heme-onc patients! I particularly love the VA clinic, where we are given hands on experience as the primary oncologist/hematologist for patients.

Research and Career Interests:  Hematologic Malignancies / Bone Marrow Transplant

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Cook, M., Dykes, K., White, K., Desale, S., Agrawal, R., Fernandez, S., ... & Lai, C. (December, 2021). Thrombotic and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Hematologic Malignancy and COVID-19. Clinical Lymphoma Myeloma and Leukemia, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clml.2021.12.011.
• Dykes, K., Desale, S., Javaid, B., Miatlovich, K., Kessler, C (November, 2021). A new reality for multiple myeloma renal failure: US data report on kidney transplant outcomes. Clinical Lymphoma Myeloma and Leukemia, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clml.2021.11.002.
• Dykes, K., Kessler, C. (October, 2021). First Report of COVID-19 Vaccine-Induced Flare of Compensated Congenital Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. Blood Coagulation and Fibrinolysis, doi: 10.1097/MBC.0000000000001097.
• Dykes, K., Johnson, C., Gong, J., McKenzie, S., Husseinzadeh, H. (January, 2021). Bleeding and thrombotic adverse events in hospitalized patients under empiric treatment for suspected heparin-induced thrombocytopenia while awaiting confirmatory testing. Clinical and Applied Thrombosis/Hemostasis, https://doi.org/10.1177/1076029621996473.
• Dykes, K., Peedin, A. (July, 2020). Educational Case: A Case of Transfusion-Transmitted Babesiosis: Diagnostic Perspectives Across the Clinical Laboratory. Academic Pathology, https://doi.org/10.1177/2374289520951929.
• Gaugler, J., Dykes, K. (2018) Assessing mechanisms of benefit in adult day programs: the adult day services process and use measures, Aging & Mental Health, DOI: 10.1080/13607863.2018.1481931.
• Dykes, K., Sarkinen, K., Louwagie, K., Gaugler, J. (2016). Respite Care, Current Status and Future Of. In N. Pachana (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Geropsychology (pp. Sect. 3, Chap. 42). Singapore: Springer Singapore.
• Dykes, K., Pomportl, M., Gronseth, B., Friedman, J. (2015). Long-Lived Human Populations (Blue Zones). In S. Whitbourne (Ed.), Wi ley-Blackwell’s Encyclopedia of Adulthood and Aging (pp. doi:10.1002/97811185). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
• Sarkinen, K., Dykes, K. (2015). Elder Abuse and Neglect. In S. K. Whitbourne (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Adulthood and Aging (pp. doi:10.1002/97811185). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.

Hobbies: Exploring San Diego and the local areas with my husband and our furry friend, Rusty. I also love running, reading, and dabbling with art projects.

Amanda Herrmann, M.D.

Hometown: Skillman, NJ

Medical School: Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School

IM Residency: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  Being surrounded by and learning from the smartest people I have ever met in the most beautiful part of the country! I am inspired by the work of my co-fellows and faculty mentors in this field and also love that we can enjoy San Diego together. Some of my favorite memories from the last year include painting on the beach in La Jolla with my co-fellows and running a half marathon around Mission Bay with my VA clinic team!

Research and Career Interests:  Solid tumor oncology, thoracic oncology

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Hsu R, Herrmann A, Gaur K, Bing X, Nieva J. (2022) “Evaluating Real World Mutational Differences Between Hispanics and Asians with NSCLC at a Large Academic Institution in Los Angeles.” Clinical Lung Cancer 2022 Nov;23(7):e443-e452. PMID 35902325.
• Marmarelis M, Grady C, Liu G, Patel D, Liu S, Montenegro G, Patil T, Nieva J, Herrmann A, Marrone K, Lam V, Sun F, Dowell J, Velcheti V, Nguyen M, Miller K, Iams Q, Hwang Q, Camidge DR, Aggarwal C. (2022) “Treatment patterns and outcomes in ALK or ROS1 altered NSCLC: An ATOMIC Registry Study.” Journal of Clinical Oncology 40:16_suppl, 9077-9077.
• Montenegro G, Vanderwalde A, Raez L, Nieva J, Feldman R, Herrmann A, Nagaska M, Ikpeazu C, Mamdani H, Pai S, Wozniac A, Spira A, Lopes G, Liu S, Kim C. (2021) P76.43 “Co-occurring Genomic Alterations and Treatment Outcomes in Patients with EGFR Exon 20 Insertion Positive NSCLC.” Journal of Thoracic Oncology 16(3). S605-S606.
• Herrmann A, Lin S, Elatre W, Nieva J. (2019) “An Identity Crisis: Small Cell Transformation in EGFR Mutated NSCLC.” Poster presentation: American College of Physicians, Southern California Chapter Scientific Meeting, Carlsbad, CA. 
• Sedhom D, Herrmann A, D’Souza M, Fyfe-Kirschner B, Zaldana F, Schlesinger N, Rustgi V. (2018) Vanishing Bile Duct Syndrome in a Patient with Uterine Cancer and Paraneoplastic Systemic Sclerosis: A Complex Clinical Challenge. ACG Case Reports Journal 2018(5): e95. PMID 30643839.
• Friedlander S, Herrmann A, Lowry D, Mepham E, Lek M, North K, Organ C. (2013) ACTN3 Allele Frequency in Humans Covaries with Global Latitudinal Gradient. PLoS ONE 8(1): e52282. PMID 23359641.

Hobbies: Running (a lot), swimming in the ocean after long runs, soccer (go LAFC!), exploring San Diego, finding new restaurants

Katarina Vsiljevic, M.D.

Hometown: Belgrade, Serbia

Medical School: University of Maryland School of Medicine

IM Residency: University of California, San Diego, La Jolla CA 

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  My cofellows!

Research and Career Interests:  Solid Tumors

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Vasiljevic K, Patel S. Characterizing Myositis in Patients Receiving Immune-Checkpoint Inhibitors while on Statin Therapy. Annual UCSD Internal Medicine Resident Research Symposium, 2021.
• Vasiljevic K, McGuire WC, Crotty Alexander LE. Multiple Serous Cavity Involvement of Aggressive Plasma Cell Neoplasm. American Thoracic Society Annual Meeting, 2021.
• Vasiljevic K, Kwan B, and Gupta V. A Stroke of Bad Luck: Pulmonary Mucormycosis with Rare Embolic Phenomenon. American College of Physicians Annual Meeting, 2020.

Hobbies: Running, hiking, cycling, weightlifting, painting

Zoe Zhang, M.D.

Hometown: China and New York City, NY

Medical School: Duke University School of Medicine

IM Residency: Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  Meeting all my co-fellows who have been an amazing source of support and whom I love to hang out with in and out of the hospital.

Research and Career Interests:  Breast Oncology

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Zhang, X., Yeung, K.T. Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Curr Breast Cancer Rep (2023).
• Zhang X, Khurana A, Hirani S, Kidd J, Paul A. Paraneoplastic Glomerulonephropathy Associated With Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Descriptive Analysis of Published Reports. Cureus. 2023;15(3):e36928. Cited in Cited in PubMed; PMID: 37131574. Pub Status: Published.
• Zhang X., Ashcraft K.A., Betof A.W., Nair S.K., Dewhirst M.W.. (2019, Jun). Can Exercise-Induced Modulation of the Tumor Physiologic Microenvironment Improve Antitumor Immunity?. Cancer Research , 79(10), 2447-2456.
• Zhang X., Khurana A., Paul A.. (2020, April 28). Paraneoplastic Glomerulonephropathies Associated with Solid Tumor: A Review of Published Literature [Poster presented]. AACR Annual Meeting 2020/Virtual, VA, USA.
• Zhang X., Ashcraft K.A., Betof A.W., Nair S.K., Dewhirst M.W.. (2019, Jun). Can Exercise-Induced Modulation of the Tumor Physiologic Microenvironment Improve Antitumor Immunity?. Cancer Research , 79(10), 2447-2456. Cited in PubMed; PMID: 31068341. Pub Status: Published.
• Ashcraft K.A., Hannan J.L., Eichenbaum G., Zhang X., Pak E.S., Faught A.M., Patel P., Dewhirst M.W., Koontz B.F.. (2019, Apr). Clarifying the Relative Impacts of Vascular and Nerve Injury That Culminate in Erectile Dysfunction in a Pilot Study Using a Rat Model of Prostate Irradiation and a Thrombopoietin Mimetic.. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys., 103(5), 1212-1220..Cited in PubMed; PMID: 30529374. Pub Status: Published.

Hobbies: hiking, drawing, fashion design

Tali Azenkot, M.D.

Hometown: San Jose, CA

Medical School: University of California, Davis

IM Residency: University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  The right balance between broad exposure and ability to tailor the fellowship experience, while living in San Diego!

Research and Career Interests:  Solid tumor oncology

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Gaut D, Oliai C, Boiarsky J, Zhang S, Salhotra A, Azenkot T, Kennedy VE, Khanna V, Olmedo Gutierrez K, Shukla N, Moskoff B, Park G, Afkhami M, Patel A, Jeyakumar D, Mannis G, Logan AC, Jonas BA, Schiller G. Measurable residual disease conversion rate with consolidation chemotherapy in acute myeloid leukemia. Leuk Lymphoma. 2024 Jan;65(1):69-77. doi: 10.1080/10428194.2023.2264426. Epub 2024 Jan 10. PMID: 37801340.

• Khanna V, Azenkot T, Liu SQ, Gilbert J, Cheung E, Lau K, Pollyea DA, Traer E, Jonas BA, Zhang TY, Mannis GN. Outcomes with molecularly targeted agents as salvage therapy following frontline venetoclax + hypomethylating agent in adults with acute myeloid leukemia: A multicenter retrospective analysis. Leuk Res. 2023 Aug;131:107331. doi: 10.1016/j.leukres.2023.107331. Epub 2023 May 29. PMID: 37263072.

• Azenkot T, Jonas BA. Clinical Impact of Measurable Residual Disease in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Cancers (Basel). 2022 Jul 26;14(15):3634. doi: 10.3390/cancers14153634. PMID: 35892893; PMCID: PMC9330895.

• Azenkot T, Schwarz EB. Special Considerations for Women of Reproductive Age on Anticoagulation. J Gen Intern Med. 2022 Aug;37(11):2803-2810. doi: 10.1007/s11606-022-07528-y. Epub 2022 May 31. PMID: 35641728; PMCID: PMC9411301.

Hobbies: Yoga/ Pilates, traveling, exploring neighborhoods in San Diego

Tanim Jain, M.D.

Hometown: Queens (New York City), NY

Medical School: Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell

IM Residency: Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  

Research and Career Interests:  

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

Hobbies: 

Brian Ji, M.D., Ph.D. (PSTP)

Hometown: Madison, WI

Medical School: Columbia University

IM Residency: University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  The breadth and depth of clinical training, the outstanding research opportunities, and the people!

Research and Career Interests:  Better understand the mechanisms of tumor growth and proliferation

Posters/Presentations/Publications: 

• Shahin M., Ji B, Dixit P. “EMBED: Essential Microbiome Dynamics, a dimensionality reduction approach for longitudinal microbiome studies”. NPJ Systems Biology and Applications. June 2023.

• Li Z*, Ji B*, Dixit P*, Lien E, Tchourine K, Hosios A, Tchourine K, Westermark A, Gorodetsky E, Sullivan L, Vander Heiden, M, Vitkup D. “Cancer cells depend on environmental lipids for proliferation when electron acceptors are limited”. Nature Metabolism. June 2022. *First author.

• Ji B*, Sheth R*, Dixit P, Tchourine K, Vitkup D. "Macroecological dynamics of gut microbiota". Nature Microbiology. May 2020. *First author.

• Ji B*, Sheth R*, Dixit P*, Huang Y, Kaufman A, Wang H, Vitkup D. "Quantifying spatiotemporal variability and noise in absolute microbiota abundances using replicate sampling". Nature Methods. August 2019. *First author.

Hobbies: Playing basketball, soccer, and keeping up with my toddler!

Eric Roth, M.D., Ph.D. (PSTP)

Hometown: Carmel, IN

Medical School: Stony Brook University

IM Residency: University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  The close-knit, supportive, and approachable community that UCSD has fostered in part from keeping so many of their past trainees as faculty!

Research and Career Interests:  Solid tumor oncology

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Cimica V, Dalrymple NA, Roth E, Nasonov A, Mackow ER. An innate immunity-regulating virulence determinant is uniquely encoded by the Andes virus nucleocapsid protein. mBio. 2014 Feb 18;5(1). PMID: 24549848
• Roth E, Cao J. miR-181 suppresses metastasis via MMP-14. Aging. 2015 Oct;7(10):740-1. PMID: 26527609
• Li Y, Kuscu C, Banach A, Zhang Q, Pulkoski-Gross A, Kim D, Liu J, Roth E, Li E, Shroyer KR, Denoya PI, Zhu X, Chen L, Cao J. miR-181a-5p Inhibits Cancer Cell Migration and Angiogenesis via Downregulation of Matrix Metalloproteinase-14. Cancer Res. 2015 Jul 1;75(13):2674-85. PMID: 25977338
• Alford VM, Roth E, Zhang Q, Cao J. A Novel Collagen Dot Assay for Monitoring Cancer Cell Migration. Methods Mol Biol. 2016; 1406:181-7. PMID: 26820955
• Roth E, Frohman MA. Proliferative and metastatic roles for Phospholipase D in mouse models of cancer. Adv Biol Regul. 2018 Jan; 67:134-140. PMID: 29154090
• Banach A, Jiang YP, Roth E, Kuscu C, Cao J, Lin RZ. CEMIP upregulates BiP to promote breast cancer cell survival in hypoxia. Oncotarget. 2019 Jul 2;10(42):4307-4320. PMID: 31303964
• Roth E*, Ghafary I*, Chang-Kyung K*, Lu M*, Taub E, Lee S, Cohen I, Lu Z. The association of QTc prolongation with cardiovascular events in cancer patients taking tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Cardiooncology. 2023 May 19;9(1):25. PMID: 37208762

Hobbies: Road bicycling, trail running, snorkeling, surfing

Tro Sekayan, M.D. (Hematology Track)

Hometown: Damascus, Syria and Los Angeles, CA

Medical School: University of Damascus Faculty of Medicine

IM Residency: Midwestern University GME Consortium/Verde Valley Medicne Center, Cottonwood, AZ

What is your favorite part of UCSD fellowship?  One of my favorite aspects of the UCSD fellowship is working with outstanding attendings who are experts in their fields and deeply committed to teaching and mentorship. Plus, living in beautiful San Diego is a fantastic bonus!

Research and Career Interests:  I am deeply interested in classical hematologic disorders, particularly in the evaluation and management of thrombosis. My research project includes evaluating the utility and efficiency of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in assessing venous thromboembolism, as well as comparing patient satisfaction with POCUS versus traditional ultrasound. Additionally, I have contributed to developing a graduate medical education accredited program for Hematology-focused POCUS training.

Posters/Presentations/Publications:

• Sekayan T., Simmons D.H., von Drygalski A. Etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb gene therapy for patients with hemophilia B (congenital factor IX deficiency). Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2023 Jul-Dec;23(12):1173-1184. doi: 10.1080/14712598.2023.2282138. Epub 2023 Dec 28. PMID: 37962325.
• Joseph, B.C., Sekayan, T., Falah, N., von Drygalski, A. Tranexamic Acid Reduces Large Traumatic Bleeding and Mortality in Murine Iron Deficiency Anemia By Mechanisms Beyond Control of Fibrinolysis. Blood 2023; 142 (Supplement 1): 1230. doi: https://doi.org/10.1182/blood-2023-178119
• Schmoyer J., Sekayan T., Pradeep R., Rocca N., Rural healthcare: A retrospective review of lung carcinoma demographics and screening in the northern Arizona healthcare system. American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting 2023. Online Publication, May 31, 2023
• Schmoyer J., Sekayan T., Rocca N., Optimizing Rural Healthcare: A Retrospective Review of Initial Diagnostic Workup for Multiple Myeloma or Monoclonal Gammopathy. American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting 2022. Online Publication, May 26, 2022.

Hobbies: hiking/going to the beach with my family, playing the violin and oil painting

Ahmed Ali, M.D.

Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, FL

Medical School: Northwestern University

IM Residency: University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston, Houston, TX

Hershey Dudipala, M.D.

Hometown: Akron, OH

Medical School: Northeast Ohio Medical University

IM Residency: Boston University Medical Center, Boston, MA

Nicole Farha, M.D.

Hometown: Wichita, KS

Medical School: University of Kansas

IM Residency: Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH

Chris Grant, M.D.

Hometown: Pleasanton, CA

Medical School: Medical College of Wisconsin

IM Residency: University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA

Erin McGillivray, M.D.

Hometown: Pleasanton, CA

Medical School: Temple University

IM Residency: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA