Faculty Spotlight: Maryam Monajemzadeh

Dr. Monajemzadeh earned her MD from Tehran University of Medical Sciences, followed by a residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at Tehran University. After residency, she undertook specialized training, including in Pediatric Pathology at SickKids Hospital, and Gastrointestinal Pathology at Mount Sinai in Toronto. Dr. Monajemzadeh then completed fellowships in Gastrointestinal Pathology and Liver Pathology at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.  We welcomed her to the pathology team at the St. Joseph’s site in September and she is working in her area of specialty.

Q. What is your specialty and why did you choose it?

A. “Ever since I was a child, I loved puzzles; when I was a medical student, I loved to attend CPC and tumour board sessions, and I noticed how similar they were to solving puzzles. The specimens for me are like very important diagnostic riddles, and you have to put all the pieces together and consider every factor to figure out a proper diagnosis. Having solved puzzles throughout my childhood, I was very fascinated with pathology and knew it was for me. During my residency and also first years of job I saw many gastrointestinal, liver, and pediatric cases and was naturally attracted to those fields, so I pursued a GI pathology fellowship at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, a liver pathology fellowship at Toronto General Hospital, and was a post-doctorate research fellow at University Health Network for pancreatic cancer research, working with some of the most notable and knowledgeable pathologists.”

Q. What is your favourite aspect of your current position?

A. “I love the specimen diversity involved in pathology. With it, there is always something to learn and something to question in our field, and we always have to stay informed on new developments and research being done. When teaching, we also learn more ourselves too. I appreciate the calm environment of pathology too!”