Stanford Medicine picks RSNA president as next radiology chair
Stanford Medicine on Thursday picked a prestigious physician as its next radiology chair following a nationwide search.
Umar Mahmood, MD, PhD, currently the president of the Radiological Society of North America, will take on the title beginning Feb. 1. He currently is chief of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, among other titles, at Massachusetts General Hospital and a Harvard professor of radiology.
Mahmood has received over $25 million in grant funding as a principal investigator, published 190-plus peer-reviewed papers, and helped mentor over 100 trainees during his 25-year career.
“I am incredibly honored and excited to be joining the Department of Radiology at Stanford Medicine,” Mahmood said in an Aug. 28 statement. “As healthcare enters a period of rapid change, the department is uniquely positioned to help shape the future of radiology through its intellectual depth, pioneering spirit, and unwavering commitment to excellence across all mission areas.”
Mahmood also is director of both the Center for Precision Imaging and the MGH Center for Nuclear Medicine and Theranostic Sciences. He has held numerous leadership positions in medical imaging, including serving on the boards of the Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging and the Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research. His research interests include positron emission tomography (PET), optical and magnetic resonance imaging, with a focus on cancer signaling pathways, changes in cancer metabolism and how the immune system interacts with tumors.
He replaces Garry Gold, MD, who announced he was stepping down as chair of the Stanford, California, institution’s radiology department in October. Gold—who succeeded Dr. Sanjiv “Sam” Gambhir after he died in 2020—said last year he planned to remain with Stanford as a professor while continuing with his research activities.
Mahmood will complete his year as president at the upcoming RSNA 2025 annual meeting in Chicago. He has selected “Imaging the Individual,” speaking to the future of precision medicine, as his theme and will give his presidential address Nov. 30 at McCormick Place.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.