FEBRUARY 2026
ALUMNI UPDATES
Dr. Mohammad Kamal is the founder and CEO of OmniPathology Laboratory in Pasadena, California. He completed his residency training in anatomic and clinical pathology at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in 2002, followed by a fellowship in gastrointestinal pathology at UCLA, completed in 2003.
His specialized training in gastrointestinal and his interest in head and neck pathology has informed both his clinical practice and research interests. Dr. Kamal has led the development of a novel, noninvasive test to detect oropharyngeal HPV using a swab, reflecting his commitment to innovation in cancer screening and prevention. He regularly lectures on colitis and inflammatory bowel disease, as well as HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer, with a focus on clinically relevant pathology and translational applications. Dr. Kamal continues his contributions to the Department through a donation to trainee professional education programs and attending Q&A sessions for residents.
Dr. Stephen Koh
Dr. Stephen Koh graduated from the Keck School of Medicine of USC in 2005. He completed a combined AP/CP residency at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine in 2009, followed by Surgical Pathology and Dermatopathology fellowships, completed in 2011. He subsequently joined the Southern California Permanente Medical Group (SCPMG). Comprehensive general training and organ system based signout with subspecialty attendings provided a strong foundation for community practice, which proved invaluable when transitioning to independent practice with a high-volume, multispecialty caseload.
During training, Dr. Koh served as chief resident, gaining meaningful administrative experience. He also focused on research, including work on gene expression microarray technology to distinguish benign nevi from melanoma. This work was supported by UCLA translational research funding and the Sarkaria Fellowship, culminating in the Stowell Orbison Award and Los Angeles Society of Pathologists (LASOP) first prize, as well as national presentations. Research interests continued into practice at SCPMG, where he remains involved in IRB-approved projects. The UCLA residency and fellowship training were instrumental in shaping Dr. Koh’s clinical, academic, and professional development. Dr. Koh continues his contributions to the Department by hiring UCLA Pathology residents and mentoring them on their professional journeys.
Dr. Natalia Liu completed the combined anatomic and clinical pathology residency at UCLA in 2022. She joined her partner at Vanderbilt University, where she completed a GI/Liver Pathology fellowship in 2023. Her training at UCLA provided strong organizational skills and broad surgical pathology experience that formed a solid foundation for managing complex GI/Liver cases at Vanderbilt. She particularly valued the extensive grossing experience at UCLA and the guidance of the pathologist assistants, which proved essential for approaching and staging complex GI/Liver resections during fellowship.
She remained on faculty at Vanderbilt for one year before transitioning to the University of Vermont through a series of serendipitous professional connections that provided job opportunities that matched the career goals for both her and her partner. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the Larner College of Medicine (LCOM) at UVM in Burlington, Vermont, with clinical and research interests in GI/Liver Pathology. Her academic focus centers on medical student education, where she serves as the primary lecturer for liver pathology in the Nutrition, Metabolism, and Gastrointestinal block and leads the associated gross labs. She is also deeply involved in mentoring and advising through roles as the Pathology Student Fellowship/Post-Sophomore Fellowship Director, LCOM Specialty Advisor for Pathology, and faculty mentor within the pathology residency program for residents interested GI/Liver Pathology.
She hopes her career path highlights the value of building a broad knowledge base during residency and maintaining professional connections, as these relationships can open unexpected and rewarding opportunities. Dr. Liu continues her contributions to the Department by speaking with residents about careers after residency.
Dr. Judy Melinek
Dr. Judy Melinek is a graduate of UCLA Medical School and completed a Post-Sophomore Fellowship at UCLA in 1994, followed by a combined anatomic and clinical pathology residency in 2001, during which she served as Chief Resident. She pursued subspecialty training in forensic pathology at the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office and has built a distinguished career in academic, governmental, and private practice settings.
Dr. Melinek is a board-certified forensic pathologist and currently serves as Chief Forensic Pathologist for Communio LTD in Wellington New Zealand and as the CEO and owner of PathologyExpert Inc., where she provides forensic pathology legal consultation and expert witness services in the United States. She previously served as a forensic pathologist at the New York City Medical Examiner’s Office from 2001-2003. Working Stiff: Two years, 262 Bodies and the Making of a Medical Examiner, a memoir about her training in New York, was a New York Times bestseller and chronicled her experiences responding to the 9-11 terrorist attacks. She and T.J. also collaborated on fictional detective novels (First Cut and Aftershock), based on Dr. Melinek’s experience as a medical examiner in San Francisco and Alameda County. Widely recognized for her contributions to medical education and public engagement, Dr. Melinek is also an accomplished speaker, with a professional focus on forensic pathology, ethics, and physician wellness. She has also published academic publications on the subjects of gunshot wound trajectory analysis, sharp trauma, and cognitive bias in forensic pathology decision making. Dr. Melinek remains actively engaged with the Department by delivering lectures to residents and facilitating connections between local students interested in pathology and the Department.
Currently, Dr. Nobori is a partner physician pathologist at the Kaiser Southern California Permanente Medical Group (SCPMG), where he signs out general pathology cases and serves as the dermatopathologist consultant for his medical center. The training in surgical and clinical pathology at UCLA prepared him extremely well for daily case sign out in general practice. He is also a faculty lecturer in the Health Systems Science Department in the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine.
Dr. Nobori serves in several leadership roles within the Kaiser system, including as the SCPMG Regional Pathology Practice Support Leader, the chair of the West Los Angeles Blood Management Committee, and the lead for the West Los Angeles Laboratory Test Appropriateness Committee. His experiences at UCLA were critical for his early development in health care leadership. He continues to use tools he developed during his chief residency and through the UCLA Resident Quality Improvement and Informaticist programs. He strongly encourages residents to take advantage of these valuable opportunities. Dr. Nobori continues his contributions to the Department by presenting to residents on career development after residency and mentoring new faculty alumni at Kaiser.
California Society of Pathologists Annual Meeting – Long Beach, CA
The California Society of Pathologists Annual Meeting took place from December 4-6, 2025 in Long Beach, CA.. Department attendees included Dr. Mai Elzieny (General Surgical Pathology Fellow), Dr. Steve Hart, Dr. Lee Hilborne, Dr. Yuna Kang, Taranjit Kaur (Post-Junior Fellow), Nichole Legaspi (Post-Junior Fellow), Dr. David Lu, Dr. Dipti Sajed, Dr. Peggy Sullivan, and Dr. Ruoji Zhou (PGY-3).
I would like to take a moment to recognize and celebrate a group of our DGSOM medical students who represented UCLA at the conference.
Clara Cousins (MS4) and Rony Moon (MS3) co-presented a poster depicting our collaboration of students from the Pathology Interest Group (Dr. Elena Stark is the group advisor), our partners from the Community Engagement Program in GIM/HSR (Gloria Moon and David Rincon), and the Dodgers Foundation.
The full student design and implementation team includes medical students: Brandon Cobb, Brianna Green, Diana P. Castro, Jakob von Morgenland, Magda Wojtara, and Eleanor Frost. Additional collaborators include Cecilia Rugamas and Dr. Kene Ojukwu.
The work received the Best Poster Presentation Award for a QI project highlighting pathology’s role in cancer care to youth. Youth outreach is not often spotlighted in Pathology academic spaces, so seeing it acknowledged at this level is especially meaningful and validating. Congratulations to all!
Dr. Samuel W. French (middle) and Dr. Weibo Yu (right) worked with Dr. Vatche G. Agopian (left, Professor of Surgery, Director of Dumont-UCLA Liver Cancer Center) from the Liver Transplant Surgery team to characterize the histopathologic spectrum of LR3/LR4 lesions identified on imaging for early liver cancer screening. The team is presented their preliminary results at the UCLA 2nd Annual Comprehensive Liver Research Center Symposium.
Clinical Laboratory Scientist Video Premiere
Behind every accurate diagnosis is a team of experts working in the lab. One of the most vital roles? The Clinical Laboratory Scientist or CLS. Learn how to become CLS, explore career growth opportunities, and take the first step toward a future in healthcare.
A special thank you to our project working group, Dr. Rebecca Sosa, Marivic, Lilian, Maria, and Anastasia for working on this!
Pathology Volunteer Event at the LA Regional Food Bank – December 6, 2025
Thank you to those who were part of our volunteer team: Alma, Anastasia, Carmen, Diana, Eunice, Dr. Farres Obeidin, Jeff, Jonelle, Karla, Kelli, Ko, Paola, Rita, Ron, Dr. Sarah Dry, Dr. Sarah Zhang, and Veronica!
We have scheduled an upcoming Volunteer Day on Saturday, May 2 – please plan to join us! The PLM volunteers at our events have really enjoyed helping our local communities while in the process getting to know each other better.
On behalf of the Inclusive Excellence Program, we are excited to share a blood and platelet donation event happening now through Friday, February 27 at the Ackerman Student Union Donor Center. This event is made possible through a collaboration between the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine and the UCLA Blood & Platelet Center.
In recognition of MLK & Black History Month, all donors at this event can receive a specially designed shirt from UCLA Alumnus, Sid Francis, while supplies last.
Donation appointments are strongly encouraged. To schedule a donation, please call 310-825-0888, Option 2.
This initiative reflects our shared commitment to promoting blood donation for all and encouraging participation from our diverse UCLA community. It aligns with our department’s Inclusive Excellence goals to support equitable healthcare outcomes by encouraging broader participation in blood and platelet donation. A diverse donor pool is critical to meeting patient needs across Los Angeles County and the UCLA Health system.
We encourage you attending, spreading the word, and supporting this important collaborative effort. Thank you for helping us promote health, inclusion, and community impact.
If you attend the event, please feel free to take photos during the event and send them to the IE Co-Chairs at PathologyIECoChairs@mednet.ucla.edu.
Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) Informational Session – January 26, 2026
The Inclusive Excellence Program recently hosted a CLS Informational Session for UCLA students interested in learning more about careers in clinical laboratory science. The session highlighted the critical role CLS professionals play in patient care, offered insight into training pathways and day-to-day work. The session featured outstanding speakers Anh-Thi Ta (Post-Baccalaureate Clinical Science Student, CSU Dominguez Hills), Dr. Sarah Turkel (Assistant Professor and Program Director, CLS Training Program, CSU Dominguez Hills), Nadyn Peralta (Clinical Laboratory Scientist), Sylvia Miyagishima, MLS(ASCP) (CLS Specialist, Molecular Diagnostics Laboratories), and Jowin Rioveros, BB(ASCP) (Regulatory Affairs Manager).Thank you to everyone who helped make this a meaningful and engaging session as we continue to support workforce development and career exploration in pathology and laboratory medicine!
Publications & Presentations
Research Grants
New Research Grants
I’m delighted to announce our FY26 Q2 (October – December 2025) Faculty Research Grants.
Monica Cappelletti, PhD – The UCLA Delayed Immunological Tolerance after Kidney Transplantation (Sponsor: CIRM)
Suki Chandrasekaran, PhD – Clinical Evaluation of The Pattern Pneumonia ID/AST Panel and Pattern System (Sponsor: Pattern Bioscience, Inc.)
Suki Chandrasekaran, PhD – Cytophenix Flocast Gram-Negative Pre-Clinical Study (Sponsor: Cytophenix PTY, LTD. [Australia])
Gregory Fishbein, MD – Understanding Mechanisms Driving Poor Outcomes in Women with Dermatomyositis (Sponsor: NIH)
Khalda Ibrahim, MD – Utilizing Technology and AI Approaches To Facilitate Independence and Resilience in Older Adults (Sponsor: Johns Hopkins University)
Harry Pickering, PhD – Urinary Signatures Predicting CMV Viremia in Kidney Transplant Recipients (Sponsor: American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics)
Harry Pickering, PhD and Elaine Reed, PhD – Evaluation of the Mechanisms Underlying Induction and Maintenance Immunosuppression Impact on T Cell Function after Kidney Transplantation (Sponsor: NIH)
Peggy Sullivan, MD – Correlation of BCI with Endocrine Therapy Benefit in ER+DCIS (Sponsor: Biotheranostics, Inc.)
Yazhen Zhu, MD, PhD –Translational Development of Osteosarcoma (OS) Extracellular Vesicle (EV) Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMP) Activity Assay for Assessing Patient Treatment Responses (Sponsor: NIH)
Pathology Art Collective
Our Pathology Art Collective showcases the creativity of the members of our Department. We are now accepting submissions to be displayed and featured here, which may include paintings, drawings, photography, poems, etc. If your creativity involves home improvement projects, cooking, gardening, sewing, theater, musical performance etc., please feel free to submit photos. Please send your submissions to Anastasia (agustafson@mednet.ucla.edu).
Inclusive Excellence Series
Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Duke University
Clinical Seminar Series – Topic: GI/Liver
Huamin Wang, MD, PhD, FCAP
Chief, Gastrointestinal, Liver, and Pancreatic Pathology
Vice President, Pancreatobiliary Pathology Society
Clinical Seminar Series – Topic: Cardiothoracic
Sanja Dacic, MD, PhD
Director of Thoracic Pathology
Daljit S. & Elaine Sarkaria Lectureship & Quality Day
