Sharmila Majumdar, PhD, Appointed to the Margaret Hart Surbeck Distinguished Professorship in Advanced Imaging
Sharmila Majumdar, PhD was recently selected by UC San Francisco (UCSF) Chancellor Sam Hawgood, MBBS and Dean of the UCSF School of Medicine Talmadge King, MD as the next holder of the Margaret Hart Surbeck Distinguished Professorship in Advanced Imaging in the department.
The Surbeck Professorship represents one component of a visionary, three-part legacy gift by Margaret Surbeck in 2003, the other two being the Margaret Hart Surbeck Laboratory in Advanced Imaging in Byers Hall, led by Daniel Vigneron, PhD, and the Surbeck Collection in the UCSF Library, which consists of historically interesting devices and papers from Mrs. Surbeck's work in medical applications of electromagnetic radiation. At Mrs. Surbeck's behest, the endowment of a faculty chair was envisioned to fuel innovation in imaging science by providing financial support to a prominent international leader “in the application of electromagnetic radiation to human health.”
Dr. Majumdar is professor and vice chair for Research in the UCSF Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, and holds joint appointments in the Departments of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences and Orthopedic Surgery at UCSF.
She obtained her PhD from Yale University in Engineering and Applied Sciences. After a short stay at Yale as a post-doctoral researcher and Assistant Professor she was enticed to join the department by Alexander R. Margulis, MD in 1989. Her research work on imaging, particularly magnetic resonance and development of image processing and analysis tools, has been focused in the areas of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, and lower back pain, and supported by R01, BRP, P50, P30 and other NIH grant mechanisms. She has published extensively in the highest impact journals in our field, and serves as a reviewer and on the editorial board for multiple scientific publications. She was selected as a fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers in 2004 and a fellow of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) in 2008. In 2007, the UCSF Haile T. Debas Academy of Medical Educators at UCSF awarded her the award for "Excellence in Direct Teaching and/or Excellence in Mentoring and Advising." She was awarded the ISMRM Gold medal in 2016.
“Dr. Majumdar is known at UCSF, nationally and internationally as an outstanding innovator, mentor and collaborator,” shares Christopher Hess, MD, PhD, chair of UCSF Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging. “The professorship will enable her to better foster the professional development of trainees and junior faculty in imaging science, facilitate cross-campus collaboration and industry partnerships, and to enhance departmental research programs in artificial intelligence applied to biomedical imaging.”
Prior to Dr. Majumdar's appointment, the chair was held for 15 years by distinguished Emeritus Professor Sarah Nelson, PhD, who retired from full-time faculty in the late summer of 2018.