Dean's Weekly Message

January 26, 2026

Dear Colleague: 

State of the School
The start of a new year and preparation for the State of the School address invite both reflection and resolve. As we look ahead, I’m struck by how much progress we’ve made — and by how close we already are to the future we’re working toward. Many of our departments are performing at the highest levels, our research continues to gain momentum, and our partnerships are improving lives across Colorado and beyond. Even as we set bold goals for what’s next, we stay grounded in the shared purpose and care for one another that have defined this school since its earliest days. 
 
I created a video to share some of this reflection, including a personal story about a recipe and the “secret sauce.” I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch that, and I look forward to sharing even more at the State of the School address on Wednesday, January 28, at 4 p.m. At the event, we’ll discuss advances in our operations that propel us toward our goal of becoming top 10 in 10, and we’ll celebrate new leaders who stepped into roles with impressive experience and ambitious plans for our future.

I hope you’ll join us. Registration for Zoom or in-person attendance is still open.  For those who attend in person at the Elliman Conference Center, a reception will follow immediately after the address to celebrate our successful reaccreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.

An early preview of leaders we’ll celebrate this week include Dr. Saketh Guntupalli and Dr. Vik Bebarta who are featured in articles published earlier this month by our school communications team. These articles – included in the descriptions below – demonstrate why clinical care and research at our school offer hope to so many and why our campus is a place where dreams live. 

Saketh Guntupalli, MD, who was named Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology in November, is featured in an article in the CU Cancer Center newsroom about the care he and colleagues provided to Caitlin Duffy, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2023 at age 31. The CU Cancer Center was one of 176 enrollment sites worldwide, and the only site in Colorado, for a phase 3 clinical trial called Keynote-A18, conducted in 2020-2022. That breakthrough care has made her cancer undetectable, and today, Ms. Duffy talks about how grateful she is to have a “world renowned doctor” and his team by her side at a top-notch cancer center close to home.

Vik Bebarta, MD, Chair of Emergency Medicine, discusses his vision in this excellent Q&A in the newsroom of the Department of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Bebarta, who received the 2025 Society for Academic Emergency Medicine’s Excellence in Research Career Award, has already had prolific career, authoring over 260 peer-reviewed publications, serving as principal investigator on more than 30 federally funded grants, and securing nearly $200 million. In the Q&A, he tells us that he’s just getting started.

Faculty Updates
Christine Walsh, MD, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Don and Arlene Mohler-Johnson Family Chair in ovarian cancer, has been appointed Director of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology. Dr. Walsh is a leading international expert in the genetics of ovarian cancer who has built a large practice in northern Colorado. She joined our faculty in 2021.

Thomas Jansson, MD, PhD, Professor and Vice Chair of Research for Obstetrics and Gynecology and Chief of the Division of Reproductive Sciences, has been named the 2026 recipient of the organization’s Agnes Higgins Award in Maternal-Fetal Nutrition. He will receive the award on April 25 at the annual Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) meeting in Boston. Dr. Jansson has played a major role in establishing the placenta as the primary regulator of fetal growth. His work identified the placenta as a critical signaling hub that responds to maternal nutrition and metabolism to orchestrate fetal development, fundamentally reshaping understanding of maternal-fetal biology and illuminating how these processes influence babies' short-term outcomes and lifelong cardiovascular and metabolic health.

Matter of Time, a documentary featuring our very own Jamie Feinstein, MD, MPH, Professor of Pediatrics, will premiere globally on Netflix on February 9. The documentary follows the fight to cure epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a group of rare genetic disorders that cause the skin and mucous membranes to be extremely fragile. Matter of Time is told through the voices of EB families and researchers against the backdrop of Eddie Vedder’s powerful Seattle benefit concert. It’s a story about what happens when urgency meets innovation, and people show up. You can learn more about the documentary and Dr. Feinstein in this article in the School of Medicine newsroom.

Barry H. Rumack, MD, Professor Emeritus of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics, has been awarded honorary membership in the Society of Toxicology, which recognizes nonmembers who embody outstanding and sustained achievements in the field of toxicology and allied disciplines. Also, Dr. Rumack and Jonathan Samet, MD, MS, Professor and former Dean of the Colorado School of Public Health, will be recognized in February at the 100 PMA Laureates Celebration: Prince Mahidol Award Nexus in Nan Province, in northern Thailand. Dr. Rumack received the award in 2023 and Dr. Samet received the honor in 2004.

In Memoriam
Stuart Linas, MD, Rocky Mountain Professor of Renal Research at the School of Medicine and Chief of Nephrology at Denver Health Hospital, died on January 19, leaving a legacy that spans family, medicine, and generations of physicians shaped by his wisdom and generosity.

An astute, dedicated, and compassionate clinician, his main passion lay in medical education and scientific inquiry. Dr. Linas chaired the School of Medicine curriculum steering committee and won innumerable teaching awards from medical students and housestaff at the University of Colorado.

In 2014, Dr. Linas received the Robert G. Narins Award from the American Society of Nephrology for his many contributions to medical education. His research resulted in more than 120 publications on acute kidney injury, hypertension, and hormonal regulation of fluid and electrolyte balance, with notable discoveries across all three areas.

Thanks to Dr. Linas’s vision and leadership, the Division of Renal Diseases and Hypertension and the Department of Medicine at the University of Colorado have grown to become an internationally recognized nephrology training center.

Dr. Linas was an inspiring colleague, mentor, teacher, and friend to many of us and a tireless advocate for patients with kidney disease. Dr. Linas also was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. A memorial service was held on Friday, January 23, at Temple Emanuel in Denver. Memorial contributions may be made to the Stuart Linas Lectureship at the School of Medicine or to The Denver Hospice. 

Gates Grubstake Fund Awardees
The Gates Institute announced $1.5 million in funding for CU investigators through the Gates Grubstake Fund. The four funded projects reflect the institute’s mission to accelerate translational research and support interdisciplinary approaches to advance cell and gene therapies. Gates Institute partners with CU Anschutz Innovations on administration of the awards. Additional details about the awardees are posted on the Gates Institute webpage. The awardees and projects are:

• Christina Coughlan, PhD, Assistant Research Professor of Neurology, AD-Exo as a Plasmid-Based Diagnostic for Alzheimer’s Disease

• Jay Hesselberth, PhD, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Universal ASO Platform for Cryptic Exon Correction Across Genetic Diseases

• Wyatt Shields, PhD, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, CU Boulder; and Benjamin Bitler, PhD, Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Division of Reproductive Sciences, Macrophage Backpacks for Delivering Olaparib to High-Grade Serous Carcinomas

• Natalia Vergara, PhD, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Development of a Novel Therapy to Prevent Vision Loss in Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Recent Publications
Andrés F. Henao-Martínez, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, is a co-author of a seminar article, “Leprosy,” published January 20 by The Lancet. This work is by co-authors from institutions across the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia, and it covers key public health and clinical aspects, including epidemiology, pathogenesis, and elimination strategies.

James DeGregori, PhD, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and Deputy Director of the CU Cancer Center, is corresponding author of a review article, “Of Barriers and Loops—How Evolution Limits Most Cancer Risks to Older Ages,” published January 12 by Cancer Discovery. Marco De Dominici, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow in Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, is co-author.

Tatiana G. Kutateladze, PhD, Professor of Pharmacology, is corresponding author of an article, “Targeting epigenetic readers,” published January 9 by Nature Chemical Biology. Catherine A. Musselman, PhD, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, is co-author.

Deion Pena, from the Colorado Fetal Care Center at Children’s Hospital Colorado and S. Christopher Derderian, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery, are co-authors of an article, “Single nuclei and spatial profiling of sacrococcygeal teratomas reveals cellular composition and X inactivation heterogeneity,” published January 21 by npj Precision Oncology.

Swati Ghosh, PhD, Research Scientist in Pediatrics, is corresponding author of an original research article, “Dietary lauric acid suppresses inflammation, cholestasis, hepatocyte injury and senescence in DDC-induced inflammatory cholangiopathy,” published January 20 by Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Six co-authors are from our campus.

Lawrence A. Haber, MD, Professor of Clinical Practice of Medicine and physician with the Division of Hospital Medicine at Denver Health, is corresponding author of an article, “Left Behind in Electronic Access: Control Over Personal Health Information While Incarcerated,” published January 12 by the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

Leigh Casadaban, MD, MS, Assistant Professor of Radiology, is the corresponding author of an article, “Yttrium-90 radioembolization for primary and metastatic liver tumors exhibiting arterial-phase hypovascularity,” published January 15 by Scientific Reports. Seven colleagues from the Department of Radiology are co-authors.

Theresa R. Grover, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, is a co-author of an article, “A multicenter descriptive study of neonatal-onset urea cycle disorder patients hospitalized in level IV NICUs,” published January 12 by the Journal of Perinatology.

Adekunle Alabi, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pathology, is a co-author of an article, “Assessment of the Intestinal CYP3A Contribution to Drug Interactions with Extended-Release Tacrolimus (LCPT) Using Grapefruit Juice,” published January 19 by Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development.

Amy Connery, PsyD, Associate Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, is a co-author of a comment, “Method matters: prenatal paracetamol use and neurodevelopmental outcomes,” published January 16 by The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology, & Women’s Health.

New Faculty Onboarding Resources
Onboarding resources for new faculty are available at the New Faculty Welcome & Onboarding website. Available materials to support new faculty include slide decks and recorded presentations from the October onboarding event, plus presenter bios, FAQs, photos, and more. These resources are available on the website for faculty to review onboarding information, explore university support services, and stay informed.

COMPASS Guides
The Office of Medical Education is seeking COMPASS Guides (0.20 FTE) and a COMPASS Support Guide (0.05 FTE) for the MD program's Trek Curriculum. COMPASS Guides serve as longitudinal coaches for student development and as dedicated educators within the Trek Curriculum. Each COMPASS Guide works with approximately 10–20 students, typically onboarding 10 new students every other year. This is a wonderful opportunity to join a community of educators from across sites and disciplines. Please see the job posting for additional details.

Have a good week, 

John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MBA
Richard D. Krugman Endowed Chair
Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and
Dean, University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine