Program Details
General Details
TBD
Location
Virtual Event
A link will be sent to all registered attendees prior to the program.
Topics
DEBATE #1:
Liver Transplantation for Elderly Candidates – Pro vs. Liver Transplantation for Elderly Candidates – Con
MOTION 1: Banner University Medicine Transplant Institute
MOTION 2: University of Utah Health
DEBATE #2:
Assessment of NAFLD/NASH – Biopsy vs. Non-Invasive Assessment in Guiding Management
MOTION 1: Mayo Clinic Arizona
MOTION 2: Dignity Health, St. Joseph’s Center for Liver Disease and Transplantation
Teams
- Banner University Medicine Transplant Institute
- Dignity Health, St. Joseph’s Center for Liver Disease and Transplantation
- Mayo Clinic Arizona
- University of Utah Health




Participants
Moderator – Michael Charlton, MBBS
Dr. Michael Charlton is an internationally renowned specialist in liver diseases and transplant medicine. Listed among “America’s Top Doctors” and “Best Doctors in America,” Dr. Charlton has particular expertise in the diagnosis, treatment and management of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis) and viral hepatitis.
Dr. Charlton has served as president of the International Liver Transplant Society. He has applied his expertise in editorial roles with leading liver disease and transplantation journals, including associate editor for Hepatology, Transplantation, American Journal of Transplantation and Liver Transplantation. He was also a founding associate editor for Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Additionally, Dr. Charlton served as a principal investigator on grants and as a study section member for the National Institutes of Health, including studies of the pathophysiology of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and viral hepatitis. He has published more than 200 manuscripts, and is a lead investigator for national and international clinical trials in viral hepatitis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
Dr. Charlton has served as a panel member and writer for the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) for the management of hepatitis C and also for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. He is the only physician to serve on both panels.
Judges
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Mary Ann Huang, MD Mary Ann Huang, MD, believes in serving as an empathetic guide for patients as they navigate their liver issues, and provide them with as much information as possible to make educated decisions about their care. Dr. Huang completed her gastroenterology and transplant hepatology fellowships at the University of Michigan. Her practice encompasses all of gastroenterology and hepatology, including a continued focus in patients with cirrhosis and liver transplant. She also has a long-standing interest in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, hepatitis C and autoimmune liver disease along with medical education. |
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Sylvie M. Lebel, MD Education & Training Academic Affiliations Professional Affiliations |
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Richard Manch, MD Dr. Manch joins Arizona Liver Health after spending 18 years developing successful liver transplant programs in Phoenix, AZ. Dr. Manch is board certified in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology and Transplant Hepatology and has extensive experience as a practicing physician specializing in Hepatology, as well as significant administrative experience. |
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Michael Narkewicz, MD Michael Narkewicz, MD is a Professor of Pediatrics in the Section of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at the University of Colorado Denver, School of Medicine in Aurora Colorado. He serves as Executive, Provider Strategic Partnerships for Children’s Hospital Colorado. Dr. Narkewicz received his AB from Dartmouth College, his MD from the University of Vermont and did his residency and fellowship at the University of Colorado in Denver CO. His major areas of clinical interest are Pediatric Liver Disease, Viral Hepatitis, Acute Liver Failure and Cystic Fibrosis Liver Disease. He has research grant funding from the NIH and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Industry funding for viral hepatitis clinical trials for hepatitis B and C in children. |
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Neil J. Shernoff, MD As one peruses Neil Shernoff, MD, curriculum vitae, many awards, leadership positions, innovations and publications that may be seen, they all validify a fine career. However, there are two specific items that remind Dr. Shernoff as to why he wanted to be a doctor, he wanted to teach and make a difference. Dr. Shernoff grew up in an era of malignant professors and vowed, as a medical student, that if he would ever be in a teaching position, he would make learning fun. Having devoted a portion of his entire career to teaching and having been Teacher of the Year thrice, he believes he has fulfilled that vow. In addition, Dr. Shernoff was a Founding Father of Arizona’s 1st Liver Transplant Program. This was useful later when he had a case where the Arizona Medicaid system denied a liver transplant to a young married mother with terminal autoimmune liver disease. Dr. Shernoff went on to fight for her, something three prior Gastroenterologists were unwilling to do. As a result, not only did she receive her transplant but for the next two years, Dr. Shernoff teamed with a lawyer to overturn the state statute prohibiting liver transplants in adult Medicaid patients. Furthermore, Dr. Shernoff became a Founding Father of the Arizona Chapter of the American Liver Foundation. |
Banner University Medicine Transplant Institute
Mentor |
Anil Seetharam, MD Transplant Hepatology |
Fellows |
Sakolwan (Bow) Suchartlikitwong, MD Medical Education |
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Kelly Zucker, DO Dr. Kelly Zucker graduated from medical school at Western University of Health Sciences COMP-NW in 2017. She completed her Internal Medicine residency at University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix where she was awarded both intern of the year and resident of the year during her training. She is currently a first year Gastroenterology and Hepatology Fellow at University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix. She is interested in pursuing a career in Transplant Hepatology. |
Dignity Health, St. Joseph's Center for Liver Disease and Transplantation
Mentor
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Justin Reynolds, MD Justin A. Reynolds, MD, is the Medical Director of Liver Transplant in the Center for Liver Disease and Transplantation at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center. Dr. Reynolds is board certified in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology, and Transplant Hepatology. Dr. Reynolds received his medical degree from the University of Michigan. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Stanford University. He then completed a fellowship in Gastroenterology at the University of California Los Angeles and an additional fellowship in Transplant Hepatology at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Reynolds’ expertise includes liver disease and transplantation. He is a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, American Society of Transplantation, European Association for the Study of the Liver, and the International Liver Transplantation Society. He has also authored and contributed to multiple book chapters and research studies presented at both national and international meetings. |
Fellow |
Brett W. Hughes, MD Education Honors and Awards |
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Tanuj Sharma, MD 07/20 – Current Gastroenterology Fellowship, Creighton University-Phoenix program, Arizona Honors and Awards: |
Mayo Clinic Arizona
Mentor |
Hugo Vargas, MD I am very interested in the manner in which Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) injures liver grafts after transplantation. Along with my collaborators Drs Laskus and Rakela we have been making inroads into the mechanisms by which HCV behaves after liver transplantation. We have described the effect of viral genotypes on the course of post-transplantation hepatitis, the behavior of the virus when two viral strains are present in the recipient of a transplant and extra hepatic infection with HCV. We have pioneered the effort with respect to central nervous system infection with HCV in this patient population. I have obtained NIH funding to study the importance of viral quasispecies development in two viral regions during the course of the post-transplantation period. My clinical practice has delved in to the more practical issues of post liver transplantation HCV infection, where I am an active participant in several trials of antiviral therapy in this clinical setting. We have published several articles that deal with the challenges of treating HCV in this patient population. |
Fellows |
David B. Bayne, MD |
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Sobia N. Laique, MD |
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Blanca C. Lizaola-Mayo, MD |
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Josiah D. McCain, MD |
University of Utah Health
Mentors |
Juan Gallegos-Orozco, MD Dr. Juan F. Gallegos-Orozco graduated from medical school in Mexico and completed post-graduate medical education in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology in both Mexico and the United States, where he completed fellowship training in Transplant Hepatology at the prestigious Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education, Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona in June 2012. His main clinical and research interests include the management of chronic viral hepatitis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and liver transplantation. He has published many research articles on these and other topics and has authored several book chapters pertaining to liver diseases. Dr. Gallegos-Orozco joined the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at the University of Utah School of Medicine in July, 2012 and is currently an Associate Professor of Medicine and serves as the Medical Director for Hepatology and Liver Transplant. |
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George Rofaiel, MD, FACS Academic Appointments Hospital Appointments Administrative Responsibilities |
Fellows |
Sentia Iriana, MD, MSc EDUCATION CERTIFICATION & LICENSURE • State of Utah Division of Occupational/Professional Licensing Issued February 2018 |
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Babu Mohan, MD
INTERESTS & CAREER GOALS |
Event Schedule
9/10/2020- 10/28/2020
Online Registration Ends at 12PM
10/29/2020
6:30 PM
Event Start