Seventeen faculty members of the Department of Pathology are among the “Top Doctors,” according to Connecticut Magazine’s 2026 list. The yearly list is created with the health research firm Castle Connolly and recognizes physicians in Connecticut across many specialties, as nominated by their peers.

The Yale Center for Precision Medicine of Trophoblastic Disease (Y-GTD) held its second annual Precision Diagnosis of Gestational Trophoblastic Disease Workshop on May 9–11 at Yale School of Medicine. The event brought together pathologists from Canada, Sweden, Singapore, and across the United States for advanced training in the development and accurate diagnosis of gestational trophoblastic disease.

Melanoma has a higher likelihood than many other cancers of spreading to the brain. Once it spreads to the brain, current immunotherapies often do not work. A team of Yale researchers believes that preventing the spread may rely on the brain's immune system, not just the tumor itself.

A May 21 half-day retreat enabled Pathology faculty to engage with each other and collaborate on the department’s future strategic direction. The morning session at Harkness Lounge involved dozens of faculty members who were there to focus on strategic thinking and practical implementation of strategic initiatives.

The department’s vice chairs – Sanja Dacic, MD, PhD; Angelique Levi, MD; and David Stern, PhD – each introduced two major initiatives, then in breakout sessions, teams of faculty discussed, among other things, what the initiatives are trying to address, what success would look like in three to five years, and the opportunities and benefits of each initiative.

Among the initiatives are:

Yale Pathology and Yale Pathology Labs were represented at the recent annual Executive War College on Diagnosis, Clinical Laboratory, and Pathology Management, held April 26-28 in New Orleans. The event emphasized success stories and case studies to demonstrate how labs can survive and thrive despite constant changes in the industry. Chen Liu, MD, PhD, chair of Yale Pathology, attended with Donna Espenberg, MBA, senior director, finance and administration; Aileen Baldwin, clinical revenue and compliance manager and operations manager 2; and Stephanie Weirsman, director, Reference Services Business Development.

_{In photo, from left, Stephanie Weirsman, Aileen Baldwin, Donna Espenberg, and Chen Liu.}

Qin Yan, PhD, principal investigator of the Qin Yan Lab at Yale School of Medicine and co-leader, Genomics, Genetics & Epigenetics Research Program at Yale Cancer Center, has been appointed Anthony N. Brady Professor of Pathology. Chen Liu, MD, PhD, chair of Yale Pathology, announced the appointment at the May 27 pathology faculty meeting. The Yan Lab, an epigenetics laboratory, focuses on elucidation of the mechanisms by which epigenetic aberrations contribute to cancer and other diseases, and translation of our findings into the clinic. His laboratory has made major contributions to uncovering epigenetic regulation of cancer metastasis, immune evasion, resistance to anticancer drugs, and developing epigenetic drugs. He has received many awards including AAAS Fellow, ASIP Outstanding Investigator Award, and Era of Hope Scholar Award from DoD Breast Cancer Research Program.

Wenyi Luo, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology, will assume the leadership role of director of Anatomic Pathology at the West Haven VA Medical Center effective July 1, 2026, according to Chen Liu, MD, PhD, chair of Yale Pathology. Since joining the department in 2023, Luo has been a member of the gastrointestinal (GI) pathology service and has served as medical director of the Immunohistochemistry Laboratory since 2025. While Luo takes on his new responsibilities at the VA Hospital, his academic appointment with Yale Pathology will remain unchanged and he will continue to contribute to selected aspects of the GI pathology service on the New Haven campus.

Joanna Gibson, MD, PhD, associate professor of pathology, and director of Quality and Patient Safety, pathology, has been chosen by the Aligned Clinician Enterprise (ACE) for its Passion Project Award. The award provides funding and support for eligible healthcare providers, encouraging clinicians to pitch and develop innovative projects that enhance patient care, practice efficiency, or provider well-being. ACE is a strategic initiative launched by Yale New Haven Health System (YNHHS) and Yale School of Medicine (YSM) to integrate their business and clinical operations. Gibson’s project – “Enhancing Quality and Patient Safety in Pathology Using Large Language Models for Real-Time Error Detection” – was chosen from more than 70 submissions from clinicians across YNHHS and YSM.

A study from Nelson LaMarche, PhD, assistant professor of pathology, maps brain immune cells to block melanoma metastasis, in an article published in Neuroscience News. “Melanoma is one of the malignancies with the highest propensity to ‘home’ to the brain,” LaMarche says. “And once melanoma cells metastasize to the brain, this disease is notoriously difficult to treat. While current immunotherapies have revolutionized treatment for melanoma, a substantial amount of brain metastases do not respond.”

Mohamed Kahila, MBBCh, MD, assistant professor of pathology, presented May 16 at the 2026 European Society for Medical Oncology USA in Focus: Breast Cancer EAST Symposium in Baltimore. His topic was, “Biomarkers Beyond ctDNA: TILs, Immune Signatures, Tumor Microenvironment in Breast Cancer.” The state-of-the-art program provided exclusive U.S.-based updates from the 2026 ESMO Breast Cancer Annual Congress.

Tong Sun, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology, presented May 17 at the Chinese American Pathologists Association’s new GYN-Path series as part of its Online Education Program series. Her topic was, “Frozen Section Diagnosis in GYN Pathology: Pitfalls and Pearls.” It was a practical session on intraoperative consultation, morphologic clues, and diagnostic pitfalls in ovarian/uterine lesions.

The American Society of Dermatopathology has recognized Christine Ko, MD, professor of dermatology and pathology, with the Walter R. Nickel Award in honor of her exceptional achievements in teaching dermatopathology. She is board certified in dermatology with a specialty certificate in dermatopathology.

Pathology Resident Ujunwa Korie, MD, MS, received the Yale GME Health Equity Quality Improvement and Patient Safety Grant for one of her USCAP projects. The selection committee was impressed with the quality and potential impact of her abstract, entitled, "Improving Reimbursement for Next-Generation Sequencing Through Optimization of Molecular Testing Ordering and Billing Workflows."

Angela Kim, a student in the Pathology and Molecular Medicine PhD Program, was named a member of the Connective Tissue Oncology Society’s Young Investigator Group (YIG) Advisory Board. The YIG is a group of trainees of different levels with an interest in sarcoma. The board will oversee the YIG, coordinate more formal quarterly events, and present to the Mentorship Committee. Kim is member of the Vasquez Lab at Yale.

Kevin Anes, Technical Assistant 2, Digital Pathology

Ran Huo, Visiting Research Scientist, Yang Liu Lab

Shiying Huang, Postdoctoral Associate, Ramakrishnan Lab

Kylee Brown, Lab Assistant, Electron Microscopy Lab

Kimberly Cruz, Laboratory Supervisor, Molecular Pathology

Lisa Gras, Lab Assistant 3, Slide Room

Ishwor Bhandari, Clinical Technologist, IHC Lab

Merima Cecunjanin, Clinical Technologist, Electron Microscopy Lab

Deusa Hughes, Clinical Technologist, IHC Lab

The Department of Pathology at Yale, one of the first departments organized at Yale School of Medicine, is dedicated to continuing its history of world-renowned clinical care, innovative and impactful scientific research, and rigorous training of the next generation of pathologists and scientists. We count on the generous support of our community to help us accomplish these goals. A gift of any amount is vital to the mission of Yale Pathology.