Scrubcast

Season 2, 2023

A podcast exploring basic, clinical, translational, and health services research from Stanford University's Department of Surgery through conversations with the authors.

Each episode focuses on a recently published paper by one of our faculty and/or trainees. Listen to the stories behind the data and be the first to hear what our PIs are working on next! 

Treating Primary Hyperparathyroidism with Dr. Carolyn Dacey Seib

Dr. Carolyn Dacey Seib’s research focuses on primary hyperparathyroidism. We take a deep dive on some of her recently published papers including “Estimated Effect of Parathyroidectomy on Long-Term Kidney Function in Adults With Primary Hyperparathyroidism” in Annals of Internal Medicine  and “Risk of Fracture Among Older Adults With Primary Hyperparathyroidism Receiving Parathyroidectomy vs Nonoperative Management” in JAMA Internal Medicine. (Why internal medicine instead of surgery journals? We cover that too.)

Dr. Seib also shares her advice on how to position yourself to receive research grants (like the k76 she received from the NIH Institute on Aging) and what it’s like being an academic surgeon and starting a family.

Dr. Seib is an Assistant Professor in our Division of General Surgery’s Endocrine Section.

Are Vascular Surgeons Overusing Atherectomy? with Dr. Elizabeth George

Are vascular surgeons overusing atherectomy? Dr. Elizabeth “Lizzy” George joins the show to talk about modalities for treatment of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) and how possible policy changes could disincentivize atherectomy as a first-line treatment for intermittent claudication.

Dr. George is also the recipient of one of this year’s seed grants from the Department of Surgery. She shares a bit about her upcoming research endeavors as well as what it’s like to go from resident to faculty at the same institution.

AI-Based Video Segmentation with TECI Center

How can we make video-based review of surgical procedures more efficient?

Members of the Technology Enabled Clinical Improvement Center join the show to talk about their recent article published in the Journal of Surgical Research: “AI-Based Video Segmentation: Procedural Steps or Basic Maneuvers?”

To collect the data for this paper, the TECI team set up a booth at the 2019 American College of Surgeon Clinical Congress and asked surgeons of all expert levels to suture bowel while wearing a number of digital sensors. Despite some (hilarious) hiccoughs, they lived to tell their tale AND process mountains of data into an algorithm.

In this episode:
• Audrey Bowler, Executive Administrative Coordinator
• Sindhu Hosakote, Research Operations and Program Manager
• Calvin Perumalla, PhD Senior Research Engineer
• Brett Wise, Researcher and Fabrication Expert
• Su Yang, Research Data Analyst

Price Transparency in Healthcare with Dr. Cliff Sheckter

Dr. Clifford Sheckter joins the show to talk about a paper recently published in JAMA Surgery: “Commercial Price Variation for Breast Reconstruction in the Era of Price Transparency.” The Price Transparency Act in 2021 allowed Sheckter to gather data from hospitals across the country and compare the pricing of an important but nonemergent procedure. He explains the price differentials and correlations.

Dr. Sheckter also talks about his work as a burn surgeon at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center – a Level I burn unit. As the winner of a Travel Fellowship from the American Burn Association he hopes to learn more about treating children who suffer from burn injuries.

Dr. Sheckter is an assistant professor in our Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts with Dr. Deshka Foster

Dr. Deshka Foster joins the show to discuss her recent paper published in Cancer Cell titled “Multinomic analysis reveals conservation of cancer-associated fibroblast phenotypes across species and tissue of origin.” 

We also talk about Dr. Foster’s career as a Stanford General Surgery resident. Dr. Foster says she was able to earn her PhD by adding an extra year onto her professional development time thanks to amazing mentorship and the Advanced Residency Training at Stanford (ARTS) Program.

Learn how she got interested in bench work, managed her time, got funding, and totally crushed it. 

p.s. “Desmoplasia” is actually spelled exactly how it sounds!