Get to Know, Hisham Bahmad, MD - December Member Spotlight

Hisham Bahmad, MD
A third-year pathology resident at the Mount Sinai Medical Center of Florida
Miami, Florida

What is your current role?
I am currently a third-year pathology resident at the Arkadi M. Rywlin M.D. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine of Mount Sinai Medical Center of Florida. I am also member of the FSP Resident and Fellow Committee.

What is the best part of your occupation? 
The work of a pathologist is pivotal for offering optimal care for the patients, as making the right diagnoses is the center of developing an accurate plan of action to properly heal their suffering. We, pathologist, are and should always be actively involved in the day-to-day plan of treatment of our patients. 

How did you become interested in pathology?
During my last two years of medical school, I was determined to gain better understanding of the molecular underpinnings of carcinoma. I started basic research work, mainly focusing on establishing three-dimensional in vitro cellular models for prostate cancer, among other types of cancer, and identifying novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers and treatment targets for different tumors. This experience allowed me to participate in the care of patients through growing treatment-naïve patient-derived prostate cancer organoids and trying different traditional and in-clinical-trial drugs on them. To continue to develop my career, and with the aim to become a pathologist subspecialized in Genitourinary Pathology, I accepted a pathology residency position at Mount Sinai Medical Center of Florida. The Department of Pathology at MSMC has supported my clinical and research interests. The past two and a half years of AP/CP training have instilled in me a great attention to detail and appreciation for biological processes at the single cell level.

How did you become involved with the FSP?
My mentor and Chairman of the Department, Dr. Robert Poppiti, is always enthusiastic about the FSP meetings and he encourages all residents in our program to attend the meetings. From a personal experience, I can tell that every FSP meeting I have attended so far features a multidisciplinary group of speakers and poster sessions and brings together leading technology from around the world to present the latest tools, techniques, and discoveries in the field of anatomical pathology, cancer detection, grading, and staging, to discuss what is known about novel biomarkers in different diseases particularly cancers and how we can translate that clinically via molecular studies that are reflected on management plans via targeted therapies and prognostic gene panels. More importantly, faculty members and staff are very humble, friendly, and easily approachable.

Explain how you benefit from being a member of FSP?
The Florida Society of Pathologists (FSP) is the voice for all pathologists. It provides its members, particularly young residents, with the opportunities to meet with world renowned pathologists and colleagues. Not only the meetings allow valuable networking opportunities but also provide us access to the latest advances and updates that could potentially be applied to our field of work.

What would you like to see occur in the field of pathology (i.e., scientific advances, greater awareness of the field, etc.) during your career?
Few things I would like to see during my career as a pathologist include:
1. I would like to see a generation of pathologists who are actively involved in the day-to-day treatment of patients and who are pride in their work as pathologists.
2. I would like to see the technological advancements in pathology applied in our daily life jobs, including digital pathology, which reflects on improved patient care.

What are your hobbies outside of the office?
I enjoy working out every day after I come back from the Hospital. On my weekends, I spend most of my time at the beach, swimming and enjoying the Miami sun. I also love cooking and enjoy preparing my dinner meal every day.

What is something surprising that most people do not know about you?
Probably one surprising thing that most people do not know about me is that I barely sleep 4-5 hours every night. Ever since I started working as a Research Fellow back in Beirut, Lebanon, I used to sleep less, and my body got used to it. A 10-minute power nap during the day is all I need to stay focused, besides 4-5 cups of coffee every day.