Marlene Gallegos, MD, PGY-4
marlene_gallegos@rush.edu

Gallegos is currently a fourth-year pathology resident at Rush University Medical Center. She graduated with highest honors from DePaul University in 2003 with a Bachelor in Science degree and completed medical school at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2007.

Gallegos was first exposed to basic histology techniques during her undergraduate years, where she worked on a research project that introduced her to tissue fixation, embedding and sectioning techniques. This experience sparked an interest in pathology that was further solidified in her pathology courses and clinical rotations in medical school. 

Her interest in gastrointestinal pathology began in her first year of medical school, as she helped launch research projects on prognostic markers in colon cancer. As a resident at Rush, Gallegos participates in the GI medical student gross teaching sessions and is involved in GI multidisciplinary conferences. She is also currently working on several research projects and contributes to the monthly cases in the GI Pathology Web site. Gallegos plans to enhance her diagnostic skills in GI pathology, continue to work on research projects, and pursue a fellowship in GI pathology.

Selected Publications/Presentations

• Marlene Gallegos, MD, Dawn Bradly, MD, Shriram Jakate, MD. Polycystic Liver Disease Leading to Liver Failure and Transplantation. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, 2010 Apr;8(4):A24.
• Marlene Gallegos, MD, Shriram Jakate, MD. Spectrum of Hepatic Dysgenesis and Associated Disorders in Explanted Polycystic Liver Disease. Poster Presentation, CAP Annual Meeting, 2009.
• Dawn Bradly, MD, Marlene Gallegos, MD, Shriram Jakate, MD. Appendiceal Mass in an Adolescent with Cystic Fibrosis. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, 2009 Oct. 7(10):A24.
• Marlene Gallegos, MD, Dawn Bradly, MD, Shriram Jakate, MD. Heterogeneity in Clinicopathological Features of Clostridium difficile colitis. Poster Presentation, CAP Annual Meeting, 2010.
• Marlene Gallegos, MD, Dawn Bradly, MD, Shriram Jakate, MD. Clinico-morphological Findings and Outcome in Patients with Primary Biliary Cirrhosis Undergoing Liver Transplantation. Poster Presentation, CAP Annual Meeting, 2010.

 Luis Blanco, MD, PGY-3
luis_blanco@rush.edu

Blanco is currently a third-year resident in the Department of Pathology at Rush University Medical Center. He graduated from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines with a Bachelor of Science in medical technology, cum laude, in 2002 and with a doctor of medicine in 2006.

The requirements for his undergraduate course included a one-year internship in a hospital laboratory, where he was exposed to the various sections, including histopathology, which sparked his interest in pathology. Upon graduation, he returned to the United States, where he spent several months with a private practice group and the medical examiners in Michigan, as well as a one-month rotation in the Department of Pathology at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, solidifying his decision to pursue a career in pathology. His interest in GI pathology began during his teaching sessions with Shriram M. Jakate, MD, where he was exposed not only to the diagnostic aspects but to the various disciplines involved in GI. He has started research in the field and will continue to pursue GI-related projects over the next several years. He wants to hone his skills in GI pathology by pursuing a GI fellowship and ultimately a career in the field.

Michelle Collier, MD, PGY-3
michelle_collier@rush.edu

Collier is a current third-year resident in the department of pathology. She also attended Rush University for medical school and graduated in 2008. Her undergraduate work at Case Western Reserve University earned her a Bachelor of Science degree in nutrition in 2001. 

Her interest in GI first started while working as a nutritionist prior to starting medical school. She worked with a variety of clients in the community and counseled on many topics including iron-deficiency anemia, lead, failure to thrive, obesity, breast milk and formula feeding. Collier believes there is an intimate association between food, digestion and health, and this sparked her desire to pursue a career in medicine. 

Collier decided on pathology during her medical school training. She is interesting in many areas of surgical pathology, including GI pathology. She is currently pursuing a fellowship in surgical pathology.

 Selected Publications:

• Bradly DP, Collier M, Frankel J, Jakate S.  Acute Necrotizing Cholangiohepatitis with Clostridium perfringens:  A Rare Cause of Post-Transplantation Mortality.  Gastroenterology & Hepatology Volume 6, Issue 4, April 2010.

 LaTanja Watkins, MD, PGY-2
latanja_m_watkins@rush.edu

Watkins received her Bachelor of Science degree from Kentucky State University and completed her medical education at East Tennessee State University in 2009. She is currently a second-year resident in the Department of Pathology at Rush University Medical Center.

Her interest in GI pathology began during teaching sessions with Shriram M. Jakate, MD, during her GI pathology rotations as a first- and second-year resident. She has started research in the field and will continue to pursue GI-related projects over the next several years. Overall, she finds the field to be fascinating and enjoys the clinical correlation involved with the diagnostic process.

 Jennifer Dettloff, MD, PGY-1
jennifer_dettloff@rush.edu

Dettloff is currently a first-year pathology resident at Rush. She graduated magna cum laude from FloridaStateUniversity in 2005 with a Bachelor of Science degree in biological science. She completed medical school at the University of Florida in 2010.

Dettloff first became interested in GI as an undergraduate while doing research on the liver. Her undergrad research involved utilizing live cell culture techniques to look into the mechanisms of fibrosis in liver cirrhosis. In medical school she continued performing research of the liver by working on three different research projects: on concentrated on protein purification of a mutant form of alpha-1-antitrypin, the other correlated viral load in hepatitis C patients and the cirrhosis grade, the last characterized anti-HCV antibodies in IL-10 treated patients. 

Dettloff knew from undergrad that she wanted to be a pathologist and was the vice president of the pathology interest group at the University of Florida College of Medicine. With her extensive GI/liver research background and exposure to the teachings of GI pathology by Shriram M. Jakate, MD, Dettloff has decided to pursue a career in GI pathology. In the remaining years of her residency, she plans to work on GI/liver research projects, help with the GI pathology medical student labs and contribute to the GI interest group case of the month. She hopes to pursue a fellowship in GI pathology in the future.

Project: Erika A. Eksioglu, Jennifer Bess, Graham Jones, Jennifer Dettloff, Parinda Dangmeon, Huijia Dong, Haizhen Zhu, Roberto Firpi, Yiling Xu, David R. Nelson and Chen Liu. Characterization of anti-HCV antibodies in IL-10 treated patients. Accepted into Viral Immunology Publication Pending.

 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Richa Jain, MD, PGY-1
richa_jain@rush.edu

Jain received her MBBS (med school) from Gauhati Medical College, Assam, India, in 2004, followed by a pathology residency from Seth, G. S. Medical College, Mumbai, India in 2008. She found her interest in GI pathology during her residency in India and pursued it with a research fellowship in Toronto General Hospital, Canada, which focused mainly on GI pathology. 

During her residency at Rush, she plans to take her interest further and engage in projects in the field. She is taking her residency at Rush as an opportunity to learn and understand liver diseases in particular, which she has always found interesting, though challenging.

Selected publications:

• Jain R, Chetty R. Enterocolic lymphocytic phlebitis and lymphocytic colitis: drug-related coexistent pathology. Int J Colorectal Dis. 2009 Apr; 24 (4): 273-274.
• Jain R, Gramigna V, Sanchez-Marull R, Perez-Ordonez B. Composite intestinal-type adenocarcinoma and small cell carcinoma of sinonasal tract. J Clin Pathol. 2009 Jul; 62 (7): 634-637.
• Chetty R, Serra S, Jain R, Evans M, Cooper K, Iyer A. CK19 immunoexpression in extrapancreatic endocrine tumors of the gastrointestinal tract. Histopathology. 2009 Jul; 55(1): 116-120.

Ihab Lamzabi, MD, PGY-1
ihab_lamzabi@rush.edu

Lamzabi is a first-year resident in the Department of Pathology at Rush University Medical Center. She graduated from Marrakesh Medical School in Morocco with a doctor of medicine degree in 2008.

Her interest in pathology started with her clinical rotations. She began to understand that patients' symptoms and signs are the screen that shows us the changes in their organs, tissues and cells. The wheezing in an asthmatic child is a reflection of inflamed, partially obstructed bronchioles. The hard nodule on an old man's prostate is probably an adenocarcinoma.

Her interest grew as she took pathology courses and got involved in a research project about mucinous tumors of the ovary. Upon graduation, she came to the United States, learned English and started a residency in pathology. Her interest in GI pathology began during her teaching sessions with Shriram M. Jakate, MD, where she was exposed to the diagnostic aspects of GI pathology, which include but are not limited to pathology. In fact, clinical information includes several pieces that with pathology findings complete a diagnostic puzzle. Now, she is working on a research project in the GI field and will continue to pursue GI-related projects over the next several years.