Women in Medicine Month Part 2: Celebrating Women Advancing Radiology
During Women In Medicine Month, we’re proud to honor the clinicians, researchers, and educators who are advancing radiology. From exceptional patient care to teaching and discovery, we’re spotlighting the significant contributions of women at UCSF Radiology & Biomedical Imaging and sharing their experiences, reflections, and insights as women in medicine. This story is part 2 of our Women In Medicine Month series.
Proud to be an Academic Radiologist at UCSF
Maggie Chung, MD, is proud to call UCSF home. As an academic radiologist, she’s pursuing her dual passions for clinical care and research to ensure the best possible patient outcomes. Trained at UCSF, Chung completed her diagnostic radiology residency and clinical fellowship in Breast Imaging at UCSF, prior to joining the Breast Imaging division as assistant professor nearly two years ago.
“Women in medicine juggle a lot,” says Chung, who believes strong mentorship is important for women in medicine. “Very prudent advice I received from my mentors early on is the importance of knowing when to say no.”
“I’ve been fortunate to have incredible mentors, like Bonnie Joe, MD, PhD, Chief of Breast Imaging, Jane Wang, MD, Chief of Abdominal Imaging, and faculty colleagues Amie Lee, MD, and Yi Li, MD,” she says. “At UCSF, so many people are incredibly generous with their time, mentorship, and willingness to share their experiences. It's invaluable, and it’s how we all grow stronger together.”
Chung handles the full range of breast imaging and procedures and finds patient care one of the most rewarding aspects of her role.
“As a breast imager, we’re blessed that we are at the center of coordinating care,” she says. “We detect abnormalities on screening mammograms, perform biopsies, and collaborate closely with surgeons, oncologists, radiation oncologists to provide treatment recommendations for those diagnosed with cancer.”
As passionate about research and discovery as she is about patient care, Chung’s research focuses on evaluating AI applications in breast imaging. During residency, her work focused on using deep learning to simulate contrast-enhanced breast MRI images from pre-contrast images. Bypassing the need for injecting contrast in a patient – no IV insertion, no gadolinium injection, and less waiting – results in shorter, more comfortable MRI exams for patients and improves accessibility by expanding reach to more patients at a lower cost.
In another research project near and dear to her heart, Chung hopes to make personalized risk assessment of breast cancer a reality for women. She is developing image-based AI tools for personalized risk assessment and leading clinical trials to evaluate their benefits.
For other women considering a career in medicine, Chung highlights that exploring early on in your career helps opens doors, “Talk to different people and explore collaborative opportunities you wouldn’t have on your own. Once you’ve found your path, it’s just as important to stay focused and avoid spreading yourself too thin. Set realistic expectations and be kind to yourself if things don’t go as planned.”
30 Years of Breast Imaging Expertise
As a breast imaging specialist for more than 30 years, Rita Freimanis, MD has witnessed first-hand the increasing prominence of women in medicine.
At the start of her career, she was the first female faculty member in the radiology department at Wake Forest University. She was tapped to lead the Breast Imaging division upon completing her residency, at the time when mammography was a new subspecialty.
Today, she is one of eight women faculty members in Radiology’s Breast Imaging division. She is nationally and internationally recognized for her expertise in breast imaging and breast cancer, and works at UCSF Health Breast Imaging in Mission Bay, the Berkeley Outpatient Center, and at the Avon Breast Center at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.
“Let your curiosity guide you,” she advises other women considering a career in medicine.
“Every picture that we look at, every radiograph or scan, has a person behind it—a person with a whole complex history, personality, and genetics—you have to think about what’s behind the picture,” she says, as an example of how she remains curious to this day. “It’s made me a better clinician because I’m open to all pieces of information that guide decision making about a patient’s diagnosis.”
She credits her success in part to her ability to embrace change and find the positive in a challenging situation and use it to her advantage. Technological change has been constant during her career. Breast imaging evolved from primarily mammography to now ultrasound, MRI, and more biopsies. Throughout her career, Freimanis continued to learn new techniques, and increase collaboration with surgeons, oncologists, and researchers.
“Things will change, but if you remain curious, you will be prepared and better able to take on new things.”
In her research, Freimanis is currently studying 2D and 3D digital mammography to determine which is better for breast cancer screening. The tomosynthesis mammographic imaging screening trial (TMIST), sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, aims to see which technology performs best in women who have no symptoms. The trial has received awards for diversity of recruitment. Freimanis has been the site PI at ZSFG since enrollment started in July 2019.
As she prepares for semi-retirement at the start of the new year, Freimanis reflects on her success.
“I hope I have contributed to making the whole experience in medicine better for patients,” she says, noting her efforts to infuse healthcare with more humane and compassionate care. “Being successful in medicine means knowing when to act and how to be reasonable – how to put yourself in the patient’s position, to treat people smarter rather than just more.”
A Love of Teaching
“One of the main reasons I wanted to practice academic medicine is because teaching is something I really enjoy and take pride in,” says neuroradiologist Weiya Mu, MD.
With significant experience in emergency radiology, Mu joined ZSFG as an assistant professor in August 2023. She earned her medical degree at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY. She completed her diagnostic radiology residency at the Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia where she was chief resident, followed by a two-year neuroradiology fellowship at the Stanford Medical Center in Palo Alto.
“My opinion here is respected and listened to,” she says, noting her smooth and successful transition to ZSFG. “As a new attending physician, I was expecting it to be challenging. But because I’ve had such great support, it didn’t feel like a difficult transition to start here. Everyone has been very supportive and friendly.”
Mu appreciates the culture of respect and equality fostered by Radiology’s leadership team, specifically noting the emphasis on mentoring and ensuring that new faculty members get the support they need and want, which she credits for her positive experience at ZSFG.
On a typical day, Mu reviews CT and MRI studies with residents to discuss their findings and use the scans as teaching opportunities; she also reviews procedures such as lumbar punctures or spinal taps with residents.
Mu’s research is focused on understanding the effects of long Covid on the central nervous system, in collaboration with infectious disease expert Michael Peluso, MD. Currently, in the beginning stages of the study, Mu has collected spinal fluid from about patients who have agreed to donate samples.
Looking to the future, Mu is excited to continue to build on her successful start.
“I’m excited to continue to teach every day,” she says, noting she’s looking forward to building her repertoire of neuroradiology lecture topics for residents. “At ZSFG, I work with residents daily and it’s been a great experience.”