2020: Our Year in Review

It goes without saying that 2020 was truly a whirlwind year! When COVID-19 hit the U.S. in early March, everything changed. The pandemic saw shifts in everyday life and created a profound impact in the field of medicine. With it, research laboratories shut down, work became remote, and events were canceled. The community had no choice but to adapt. Although it was an unorthodox year for the Department of Pathology, it was definitely a year to remember.

It goes without saying that 2020 was truly a whirlwind year! When COVID-19 hit the U.S. in early March, everything changed. The pandemic saw shifts in everyday life and created a profound impact in the field of medicine. With it, research laboratories shut down, work became remote, and events were canceled. The community had no choice but to adapt. Although it was an unorthodox year for the Department of Pathology, it was definitely a year to remember.

As the year began, Pathology was experiencing a banner year with projections of continued growth in clinical revenues, strong grant funding, and an excellent group of residents and fellows. We had 13 new faculty that had joined the Department over the prior year and were just getting settled in, with another 12 scheduled to join us in 2020. The PRR program was in full swing with the renovations of the UH laboratories.

January 6th saw the department host the cross-department kick-off of the Michigan Medicine Laboratories (MLabs) – A Strategy for Transformation and Revolution (MSTAR) initiative at Back Office Studios in Ypsilanti. This event was followed by a March 12th Synchronization Retreat at Frutig Farms in Ann Arbor. These day-long sessions focused on repositioning MLabs in the market. Led by Drs. Jeffrey Myers and Julia Dahl, the retreat consisted of several talks, open discussions, and team-building exercises. A strong plan was coming together, with a goal of presenting it to the Regents over the summer, but the pandemic put this on hold. This project continued to progress throughout the pandemic and we anticipate it moving forward to the Regents in 2021.

The 11th annual CHAMP Research Symposium was held on February 7^th at the North Campus Research Complex (NCRC). CHAMP, the acronym for “Clinical, Hemato-, Anatomic, Molecular Pathology”, is a one-day event dedicated to science, learning, and networking among the department’s faculty, staff, and trainees. The event was hosted by Dr. Aaron Udager with its keynote speaker being David Klimstra, MD, from Memorial Sloan Kettering. The 2020 Philip Giesen Award for outstanding expertise in research by a resident was presented to Dr. Laurie Griesinger.

The department co-hosted the 2020 Mucosal Immunology Symposium at U-M's Palmer Commons in March, the last symposium held in person by the Department in 2020. Keynote speaker, Dr. Nicholas Lukacs, discussed the importance of finding a career path you love. This talk kicked off the day-long conference that also saw several speeches, networking opportunities, and poster presentation sessions.

The first known COVID-19 case in Michigan was diagnosed on March 10, 2020. Within a week, the Department of Pathology had developed, tested, and received approval for new PCR-based diagnostic tests. This was followed by new serology tests to identify IgG and IgM antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. 

“We all stepped up to the plate,” said Dr. Charles Parkos, Chair of Pathology. “Our staff, med techs, molecular and micro teams have done a phenomenal job onboarding and performing Covid testing. Our clinical faculty selflessly volunteered to cross-cover services in need of help. Many of our faculty even volunteered to help staff the field hospital. Our research faculty and staff made great strides in research programs and understanding Covid 19 despite harsh reductions in capacity to do funded research projects and operations.”

By the end of 2020, the Department had processed nearly 262,000 diagnostic tests and more than 9200 antibody tests. Pathology faculty, staff, and trainees volunteered to serve in various roles to meet the needs of the influx of COVID-19 patients, including staffing drive-through testing sites, logistical coordination for supply needs, and much more. Our faculty, staff, and trainees stepped up and helped Michigan Medicine care for our patients in unprecedented ways.

As the COVID-19 pandemic began sweeping across the state of Michigan and the nation, community leaders urged everyone to do their part by limiting the spread of the virus and "flattening the curve". This included avoiding gathering in public areas, washing hands regularly, and wearing masks to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed. Support began pouring into Michigan Medicine as civilians praised many of the essential frontline workers who continued to care for patients as the pandemic raged on.

As the disease began to spike, routine, non-urgent care was suspended, research labs not conducting Covid research were closed, the PRR project was suspended, and everyone who could work from home was required to do so. Pathology informatics and facilities did a phenomenal job ensuring hundreds of faculty, staff, and trainees were properly equipped and trained to work from home. Through this time, Pathology significantly expanded its use of Digital Pathology with whole-slide imaging, allowing cases to be reviewed and diagnosed remotely. This change will leave a lasting legacy in the way work is conducted in the department and has expanded our ability to serve patients across the globe.

In the midst of the pandemic, racial disparities came to the forefront of our attention as we saw significantly higher death rates among minorities with Covid. Faculty and staff members within the department gathered in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, against racial discrimination, and in remembrance of George Floyd as the Department of Pathology hosted its first-ever Equality Walk on the Juneteenth holiday.

Later in the summer and as a result of the pandemic, the Department was unable to host its annual going-away party for the 2019-2020 class of Residents and Fellows. However, the team of Camren Clouthier, Marie Goldner, and Pamela Howard, along with departmental leadership, joined forces to create two farewell videos as a way to give the trainees the proper send-off. 

In addition to our graduating residents and fellows, the department saw six of our MCP graduate students successfully defend their thesis and graduate, one of whom is resuming medical school at the University of Michigan, pursuing the Physician Scientist Training Program pathway. The others are in postdoctoral fellowships at U-M, Stanford University, and the University of Pittsburgh.

The department also said farewell to a number of our staff due to retirements several with over 30 years of service:  Thomas Morrow (47 yrs), Gerald Davis (44 yrs), Kathleen Davis (42 yrs), Susan Sterns (41 yrs), Jeanette Jeffries (38 yrs), Kathryn Gardner (34 yrs), and Shannon St. Andrew (32 yrs). Thank you for your faithful, diligent service to the department!

Effective July 1, the Department welcomed Dr. Liron Pantanowitz as the new Director of Anatomic Pathology, succeeding Interim Director, Dr. Jeffrey Myers. Dr. Pantanowitz joined Michigan Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and brings a wealth of expertise in pathology informatics, cytopathology, surgical, bone and soft-tissue pathology, as well as diagnostic skills. The Department also brought on 11 other faculty this year including Drs. Eman Abdulfatah (GU and Molecular Path), Shannon Bieliauskas (VA), Michael Caplan (Forensics), Erika Hissong (GI and Hepatobiliary Path), Steven Hrycaj (Immunohistochemistry, Diagnostic Path), Myra Khan (Forensics and Breast Pathology), David Manthei (Assoc. Dir of Immunology Lab, Clinical Chemistry/Toxicology/Immunopathology/Molecular Pathology), Teresa Nguyen (Forensics), Caroline “Libby” Simon (Pediatric/Perinatal Pathology), Chen Yang (Cytogenetics/Molecular Genetics), and Xiaotian Zhang (Research).

Meanwhile, in September, we saw 16 of our faculty promoted! Drs. Anuska Andjelkovic-Zochowski, Jaqueline Jeruss, Xin Jing, and Rohit Mehra were promoted to Professor. Amer Heider, Jean-Francois “Jeff” Rual, Jiaqi Shi, Lok Man Sung, Sriram Venneti, and Allecia Wilson were promoted to Associate Professor. On the research track, Svetlana Stamatovic was promoted to Associate Research Scientist; YuanYuan Qiao to Assistant Research Scientist, and Chan Chung,  Mansori Matsumoto, and Joseph Pickard to Research Investigator. A special thanks to the departmental promotions committee (Drs. Henry Appelman, Laura Lamps, Doug Fullen, Nick Lukacs, Celina Kleer, Ric Valdez, and Dafyyd Thomas).

We are also proud of the achievements of our faculty this year. Among numerous awards and recognition, three prestigious awards deserve special notice. Dr. Arul Chinnaiyan was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, Dr. Gabriel Nuñez was elected to the National Academy of Medicine, and Dr. Asma Nusrat was elected to the Association of American Physicians. Our faculty also published more than 250 manuscripts, reflecting research supported by more than $35 million in grant funding. This includes 11 Covid-related research projects resulting in 17 publications to date, with more underway.

As the pandemic eased over the summer, the PRR project resumed. Temporary space was constructed so that laboratories could relocate for renovations. The hematology laboratory was renovated with a new automation line installed, the toxicology lab and specimen processing also received newly renovated space. This multiphase project is ongoing and will take several more years to complete.

The pandemic forced us to rethink the recruitment process for new residents. Residents could no longer visit campus, meet our exceptional faculty, and tour our beautiful facilities. A team led by Drs. Ania Owczarczyk, Madelyn Lew, Kristine Konopka, Carol Farver, Brent Temple, and Camren Clouthier produced a 15-minute long video focused on the department's residency program as a way to aid its recruitment efforts. The video comes on the heels of Dr. Konopka's August 1 promotion to Residency Program Director, succeeding Dr. Allecia Wilson.

In December, Michigan Medicine received its first doses of the COVID-19 immunization from Pfizer, Inc. and BioNTech. The initial vaccines were offered to frontline healthcare workers including faculty, staff, and student employees at Michigan Medicine. The first round of vaccinations was distributed at the University Hospital, outside of Ford Auditorium. By December 31, 6,928 vaccines had been administered to frontline workers.

The Department of Pathology wishes to thank all of its students, faculty, staff, and frontline workers for their efforts and hard work in 2020, despite the challenges it brought. As we turn the corner of this pandemic, 2021 promises to be a great year.