Garry Gold to Step Down as Chair of the Department of Radiology
Garry Gold, MD, Stanford Medicine Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, will be stepping down from his role as Chair of the Department of Radiology, effective October 1, 2024.
Throughout his career, Dr. Gold has been widely recognized as an excellent clinical radiologist and patient-oriented researcher focusing on osteoarthritis and translational MRI development. His lab, the Joint and Osteoarthritis Imaging with Novel Technology (JOINT) group, continues innovating new imaging methodologies to detect early biomarkers of osteoarthritis using a variety of imaging techniques.
During his tenure, first as interim Chair after the passing of Dr. Sanjiv “Sam” Gambhir in 2020 and later as Chair in 2022, Dr. Gold has helped foster excellence within the Department of Radiology, both clinically and in research. By implementing and embracing team science as a strategic pillar set by Dr. Gambhir’s vision, he has helped foster joint ventures within the department and externally across departments to harness new technological advancements and further elevate Stanford Medicine Radiology to new levels of excellence.
The Department of Radiology has seen great success and received several special recognitions clinically. The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) designated the Stanford Health Care Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Clinic as one of its first Radiopharmaceutical Therapy Centers of Excellence in 2022, an honor that recognizes the decades-long investment the department has made into meeting regulatory qualifications, implementing training, and adhering to high-performance standards for radiopharmaceutical therapy. In 2023, SNMMI designated the Pediatric Nuclear Medicine Department at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital as a Pediatric Comprehensive Therapy Center of Excellence, making us one of only two such centers in the United States. Additionally, the American College of Radiology has designated Stanford Health Care as an ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center and Stanford Medicine Children’s Health as a Diagnostic Imaging Center of Excellence.
The research divisions within the Department of Radiology have also received significant investments to its research capabilities and infrastructure under Dr. Gambhir’s and then later Dr. Gold’s leadership. One key milestone was the unveiling of a second cyclotron in a second state-of-the-art Cyclotron and Research Facility (CRF) at 1701 Page Mill Road last year, which marks tremendous strides in enabling research advancements, supporting the development of new radiotracers, and providing more opportunities for collaborative research. Another key milestone is the installation of a research photon-counting CT (PCCT) at 3155 Porter Drive. This was later mirrored by the installation of two clinical PCCT scanners within Stanford Medicine, making Stanford Medicine one of the first institutions in the US to offer PCCT research technology both for research and clinically for patients.
The department has also seen incredible growth, including the expansion of its world-class faculty. Commitment towards training the next generation of scientists and clinicians has also remained on the forefront in Dr. Gold’s vision for the department. The launch of a new Biomedical Physics (BMP) PhD Program in 2022 marked the first PhD training program at Stanford to be housed within a clinical department. As Dr. Lloyd Minor, Dean of Stanford University School of Medicine, recognized, “the BMP program is an essential component of Stanford Medicine’s commitment to excellence in education, scientific discovery, bench-to-bedside research, and clinical innovation.”
Dr. Gold will remain with the department as a Professor of Radiology and continue his research activities. In the next several years, he will lead a new Center for Imaging in Human Performance which will support the missions of the department, Canary Center, and Wu-Tsai Human Performance Alliance.
David Larson to also Step Down as Executive Vice Chair of the Department of Radiology
In addition to Dr. Gold stepping down from Chair, David Larson, MD, MBA, Professor of Radiology, will also be transitioning away from his role as Executive Vice Chair of the Department of Radiology, effective October 1, 2024. Dr. Larson is a Professor of Radiology in the Pediatric Radiology division and a nationally recognized leader in quality and safety, serving as the Chair of the American College of Radiology Commission on Quality and Safety and as the Quality and Safety Trustee for the American Board of Radiology.
Dr. Larson’s commitment has helped shaped the clinical care offered by the Department of Radiology in many ways. His efforts and impact have been felt within the department and beyond. He not only founded the Stanford Realizing Improvement through Team Empowerment (RITE) program and co-founded the Clinical Effectiveness Leadership Training (CELT) program, but he has also overseen and guided countless quality improvement projects within the Department. Starting when he was first hired as Associate Chair of Performance Improvement in 2013, after assuming the Vice Chair for Education and Clinical Operations role in 2017 and Senior Vice Chair, Strategy and Clinical Operations role in 2022, and through his tenure as Executive Vice Chair since July 2023, David has focused on investing in the Department of Radiology’s relationship with Stanford Hospital partners and expanding Stanford Medicine’s community imaging footprint and guiding the Department’s clinical AI program. He has also led some challenging transitions in our department, including PACS changes and changes during the COVID pandemic.
Most recently, while Dr. Gold was on leave, Dr. Larson took on additional administrative duties from February 2024 through September 2024 and provided leadership and dedication to achieving excellence in the clinical, research and educational missions of the department. He also represented the Department of Radiology while engaging in strategic planning with leadership colleagues at Stanford Health Care, Stanford Tri-Valley, and Stanford Medicine Children’s Health.
Dr. Larson will remain with the department as a Professor of Radiology (Pediatric Radiology), refocusing on research as he continues to direct the AI Development and Evaluation (AIDE) Lab and lead the department’s efforts to facilitate clinical AI implementation. He will also continue in his role as the Director of the Improvement Capability Development Program (ICDP) at Stanford Medicine.
Quynh Le Announced as Interim Chair
Quynh Le, MD, Katharine Dexter McCormick & Stanley McCormick Memorial Professor and Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology, has been named by the Stanford Medicine Dean’s Office as Interim Chair of the Department of Radiology, effective October 1, 2024, while a national search is in progress.
Dr. Le’s immediate goals are to maintain continuity while supporting efforts to further the department's mission for the growing clinical services and operations, research productivity and translation, and continued supportive environment for educational programs.