Andreas Rauschecker, MD, PhD is Presented with the 2019-20 Long-Term Mentor Award

Andreas Rauschecker, MD, PhD

The UC San Francisco Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging would like to congratulate and recognize Andreas Rauschecker, MD, PhD, clinical fellow, on receiving the 2019-2020 UCSF Inquiry Curriculum Long-Term Mentor Award. He was nominated by his mentee, Carol Tran.

“We received many letters of nomination from Inquiry learners who received outstanding support and guidance from faculty,” said Mallar Bhattacharya, MD, director of the Inquiry Funding Office at UCSF. “Carol's nomination of your mentorship exemplifies the UCSF commitment to fostering the pursuit of innovation, leadership, and research.”

Tran was introduced to Dr. Rauschecker by Christopher Hess, MD, PhD, department chair, after she expressed an interest in learning about artificial intelligence (AI) applications to neuroradiology. Tran studied history of science as an undergraduate at Harvard University, and last year received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Research Training Award to complete a combined health-professional doctorate-master’s program. She says that Dr. Rauschecker started off providing her with technical background reading and other resources to properly orient her to the field of machine learning in radiology.

Carol Tran

Since that time, they have developed an automated deep learning-based method for segmentation and volumetric quantification of the fetal brain on T2-weighted fetal MRIs. This method will be used to create a normative database of brain volumes across gestational ages, among other applications to aid in fetal neurologic evaluation. Tran says that Dr. Rauschecker has helped guide her each step of the way. Additionally, he reviewed the abstract she wrote that was recently accepted as a poster presentation to the 2020 Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS) conference. Tran recently submitted another abstract for the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Annual Meeting and is currently working on a manuscript that she plans to submit in the coming months.

“All in all, I feel blessed to have such an incredible mentor who is invested not only in the success of my research project, but also in my development as a future radiologist-scientist,” says Tran. “This is especially meaningful to me as I am the first in my family to graduate from high school, and training in a field (AI innovation in radiology) where women are highly underrepresented.”

Dr. Rauschecker was presented with the award at the 2020 Inquiry Symposium and Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, April 29, 2020. Two times each year, medical students and interprofessional partners at UCSF convene for the Inquiry Symposium. The events feature plenary speakers, award presentations, and lively poster sessions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was held virtually.