Our Team
The Benign Pancreas Program is comprised of experts in fields including gastroenterology, therapeutic endoscopy, surgery, pain management, pathology, radiology, and nutrition. Our team works collaboratively to bring patients the best care possible. To learn more about our team members, please read their individual bios.
Gastroenterology
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Walter G. Park, MD, MS
Medical Director of Benign Pancreas Program
Walter Park, M.D., M.S., earned his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University and completed his clinical training in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology at Stanford University. He joined the faculty at Stanford in 2009 and focuses on pancreatic disorders. Dr. Park is actively engaged in research on developing better tests for predicting cancer among pancreatic cysts. He is also actively involved in research that focuses on developing better diagnostic tests and treatments for chronic pancreatitis. Dr. Park currently serves as the Medical Director of the Multi-disciplinary Benign Pancreas Program.
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Anson W. Lowe, MD
Anson W. Lowe, M.D. earned his doctorate degree from Mt. Sinai Hospital. He completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the Presbyterian – Columbia University Medical Center, and a Gastroenterology fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Lowe joined the faculty of Stanford University in 1989, and has focused on researching the biology of pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. He is active in developing new diagnostic tests and treatments for pancreatic diseases, and served as Associate Editor for The American Journal of Medicine. He is now the Special Sections Editor for Gastroenterology, as well as Associate Professor of Medicine at Stanford.
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Aida Habtezion, MD
Dr. Aida Habtezion is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. She is a faculty member at Stanford Immunology and a member of the Immunology Postgraduate Program Committee. Dr. Habtezion obtained her medical degree from McMaster University, completed a gastroenterology fellowship at the University of Toronto, and a post doctoral research fellowship at Stanford University. Her research involving the study of the inflammatory process and leukocyte recruitment in acute and chronic pancreatitis is supported by awards from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
Therapeutic Endoscopy
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Subhas Banerjee, MD
Director of Endoscopy, SoM
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Ann M. Chen, MD
Director of Endoscopic Ultrasound, SoM
Dr. Ann Chen is the Director of Endoscopic Ultrasound and an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. She obtained her medical degree with distinction in research from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. After completing an Internal Medicine residency at California Pacific Medical Center, she was a gastroenterology fellow at California Pacific Medical Center, and worked as an Advanced Fellow in Interventional Endoscopy and Endoscopic Ultrasound at the Comprehensive Digestive Disease Center at the University of California (Irvine). She is extensively published and a past recipient of the American College of Gastroenterology Governor’s Award.
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Shai Freidland, MD
Shai Friedland, M.D. is an endoscopist focused on pancreatic and biliary endoscopy, double balloon enteroscopy, and endoscopic ultrasound and mucosal resection. He earned his medical degree from UCSD School of Medicine and completed his graduate fellowship at Stanford University Medical Center. Dr. Friedland's clinical trials are focused on new endoscopic devices and techniques, including improved colon polyp detection, endoscopic ablation devices, and mucosal resection techniques.
Pancreatic Surgery
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Brendan Visser, MD
Surgical Director, Benign Pancreas Program
Brendan C. M. Visser, M.D. joined Stanford University School of Medicine in 2006 and is currently an Assistant Professor of Surgery. After graduation from Cornell University, he went on to attend both medical school and his residency at the University of California, San Francisco. Following his residency, he completed a fellowship in Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic (HPB) Surgery at the University of Edinburgh (Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh Scotland).
Dr. Visser does liver, biliary, and pancreatic surgery for both benign and malignant disease at both Stanford University Medical Center and the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He has particular interest and expertise in laparoscopic HPB surgery. In addition to an extremely busy clinical practice, Dr. Visser pursues clinical and translational research. He is currently working to develop several innovative, minimally invasive surgical methods to manage liver and pancreatic disease. He also studies trends in management of cancers in California, focusing on institutional and socioeconomic barriers to the care of patients with liver, gall bladder, and pancreatic cancers. Dr. Visser has been recognized by both his peers and his students as an outstanding teacher, and was awarded and the “Best Resident Rotation” Teaching Award in 2010 the John Collins Memorial Teaching Award in 2011.
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George Poultsides, MD
George A. Poultsides, M.D., is Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Stanford University School of Medicine, on staff in the Department of Surgery at Stanford University Medical Center and Associate Member of the Stanford Cancer Center. Dr. Poultsides earned his medical degree in Greece from the University of Athens School of Medicine. He completed Surgical Oncology fellowship training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and further Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery fellowship training at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Dr. Poultsides serves on the membership committee for the American Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA). He is also a reviewer for the Annals of Surgery, Archives of Surgery, Annals of Surgical Oncology, and Journal of the American College of Surgeons. His research focuses on outcomes analysis following multidisciplinary treatment of hepatic, pancreatic, and gastrointestinal malignancies.
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Jeff Norton, MD
Jeffrey A. Norton, M.D., an award winning student athlete at Dartmouth College, went on to earn his medical degree from State University of New York, Upstate Medical College. As a physician, Norton continues to earn awards for medical research, surgical work, and excellence in teaching. Most recently he was the 2011 recipient of the Alwin C. Rambar- James B.D. Mark Award for Excellence in Patient Care at Stanford University Medical Center. Dr. Norton joined Stanford in 2003 as Professor of Surgery and Chief of Surgical Oncology, and since 2006 has been Chief of General Surgery. A prolific author and writer, Dr. Norton has co-authored three books on surgery, contributed to several more, and authored well over 300 peer-reviewed articles. He also serves on the editorial board of both Cancer and World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery
Pain Management
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Stephen Coleman, MD
Stephen D. Coleman, M.D. is a clinical assistant professor in anesthesia, pain division, at the Stanford University School of Medicine. He earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin and an MBA from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Coleman completed his residency in anesthesia and his fellowship in pain management at Stanford University Medical Center. In addition he practiced and served as a faculty member in internal medicine, Dr. Coleman worked in clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry and advised pharmaceutical companies on U.S. and European regulatory requirements. Dr. Coleman worked for a private anesthesia practice in the San Francisco Bay Area before returning to Stanford as a faculty member in 2009.
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Ravi Prasad, PhD
Dr. Prasad earned his doctorate from Texas Tech University and completed his clinical internship at the Salt Lake City VA Health Care System. He subsequently completed a Pain Psychology Fellowship at Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco. Dr. Prasad is presently the Assistant Chief of the Stanford Division of Pain Management and director of the inpatient pain program (SCIPP). He recently developed a Pain Psychology Fellowship Program within the Pain Division and serves as its training director. Dr. Prasad's primary clinical focus is evaluation and treatment of psychological disorders that occur in the context of chronic pain.
Endocrinology
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Marina Basina, MD
Marina Basina, M.D. graduated summa cum laude from Moscow Medical Institute and completed both a residency and fellowship in Moscow, Russia. She completed a second residency in internal medicine at UCLA. Upon completion of her fellowship in Endocrinology at Stanford University Medical Center in 2003, Dr. Basina served as an Adjunct Clinical Instructor at Stanford. In 2008, Dr Basina returned to Stanford full time as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Endocrinology, Gerontology, and Metabolism division. An active researcher, Dr.Basina is currently the primary investigator for a Stanford University study on diabetes treatment for patients undergoing dialysis.
GI Pathology
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Teri Longacre, MD
Teri A. Longacre, M.D., is Professor of Pathology, Director of Gastrointestinal Pathology, and Co-Director of Surgical Pathology at Stanford University Medical Center. She earned her medical degree from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. Dr. Longacre has established a clinical research program to diagnose and screen hereditary gastrointestinal, pancreatic, breast, and gynecologic cancer syndromes. She is the Chair of the Pathology Department Quality Review committee, a member of the Care Improvement Committee, and directs the Gynecologic Breast Pathology fellowship program. Dr. Longacre is also the Faculty Advisor for the Stanford Cancer Center Tissue Bank. Co-author of Uterine Corpus and Cervix, Dr. Longacre is also extensively published in national and international journals, peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters in gastrointestinal and gynecologic pathology. She serves on the editorial board of several professional journals, including the American Journal of Surgical Pathology.
GI Radiology
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Michael Federle, MD
Michael P. Federle, M.D., joined Stanford University Medical Center in 2008 as Professor and Associate Chair for Education in the Department of Radiology. Dr. Federle earned his medical degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining Stanford, Dr. Federle was Chief of Quality Process and Improvement in the Department of Radiology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Dr. Federle is also an editor and reviewer for numerous medical publications, and has authored and co-authored many peer-reviewed journal articles, books, chapters, reviews and editorials. His manuscripts have been referenced more than 1,000 times in other peer-reviewed publications. Recent research projects have focused on obesity, liver injury and cardiovascular risk, as well as the concurrent use of a radiosensitizer and radiotherapy in advanced biliary and pancreatic cancer.
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Brooke Jeffrey, MD
RB Jeffrey, M.D., is Professor of Radiology, Chief of Abdominal Imaging, and Vice Chairman of the Department of Radiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine. After earning his Medical Degree from Jefferson University in Philadelphia, he completed his radiology residency and body imaging fellowship training at the University of California San Francisco. After completion of his fellowship, Dr. Jeffrey joined the faculty of UCSF as Assistant Professor in Residence, advancing in his career to Professor in Residence by 1988. In 1989, Dr. Jeffrey joined the faculty at Stanford University as Professor of Radiology and Chief of Abdominal Imaging. Dr. Jeffrey has authored and co-authored over 300 peer-reviewed publications, as well as presenting his research at hundreds of conferences throughout his time at UCSF and Stanford, and has won numerous teaching and scientific research awards. His current research focuses on perineural invasion in pancreatic cancer, pancreatic cystic lesions, and incidental pancreatic masses discovered on imaging.
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Aya Kamaya, MD
Aya Kamaya, M.D., is an Assistant Professor of Radiology at Stanford University and the Associate Body Imaging Fellowship Director for the Department of Radiology at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Kamaya earned her medical degree from the University of Utah School of Medicine, completed her residency in Diagnostic Radiology at the University of Michigan, and Body Imaging Fellowship at Stanford University. Dr. Kamaya has won numerous research and teaching awards, and has co-authored 31 peer-reviewed articles.
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Juergen Willmann, MD
Juergen Willmann, M.D., studied medicine at Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg, Germany. He completed his residency in Radiology at University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland. Dr. Willmann’s clinical focus is in Diagnostic Radiology and Abdominal and Pelvic Imaging. He joined Stanford University School of Medicine in 2008 and currently serves as an Associate Professor of Radiology and an Associate Clinical Section Chief in the Department of Radiology. An active author and researcher, Dr. Willmann has twice been awarded the Roscoe E. Miller Award for best paper presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Gastrointestinal Radiology. Dr. Willmann’s laboratory focus is on novel imaging strategies and the further development of clinically available imaging tools to aide in the detection of cancer in the earliest stages.
Interventional Radiology
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Gloria Hwang, MD
Dr. Gloria Hwang is an Assistant Professor of Radiology. After graduating magna cum laude from Harvard, she obtained her medical degree from Stanford. She completed both a surgical internship and a residency in Diagnostic Radiology at Stanford. After a one-year postdoctoral research fellowship, she underwent clinical fellowship training in Vascular and Interventional Radiology at Stanford. She is certified by the American Board of Radiology, and has a subspecialty certificate in Vascular and Interventional Radiology. Dr. Hwang's clinical and research interests include interventional oncology, including chemoembolization and ablative therapies. Her lab is studying gene-based therapies, and the combination of molecular imaging with image-guided, minimally invasive interventions. She has published extensively, and was a 2010 recipient of the Outstanding Faculty Award by the Society of Interventional Radiology.
Clinical Nutritionist
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Neha Shah MPH, RD, CNSC
Neha Shah MPH, RD, CNSC is a Registered Dietitian for Nutrition Services at Stanford Digestive Health, providing medical nutrition therapy to patients in the Benign Pancreas program as well as to other patients diagnosed with various GI disorders. She earned her MPH in Nutrition from Loma Linda University and is certified by the Commission on Dietetic Registration from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Ms. Shah is also the dietitian for the Intestinal Rehabilitation and Intestine Transplant program. For patients on parenteral or enteral nutrition, she provides recommendations for adjusting their feeding regimens and for increasing food intake. Ms. Shah also provides bedside nutritional counseling to patients recovering from GI surgery at Stanford Hospital and Clinics.