Facts & Faith Fridays

Bloodlines of Hope brings together the clarity of medical science and the compassion of community advocacy. In this September session, Dr. Ruchi Desai - a hematologist dedicated to advancing diagnosis, treatment, and research for patients with complex blood disorders, will guide us through the evolving landscape of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) and aplastic anemia.

This conversation invites communities to understand the challenges patients face, recognize the importance of early diagnosis, and consider how advocacy, education, and compassion can strengthen the path toward healing. Together, we’ll explore what it means to stand with individuals and families navigating hematologic disorders and how knowledge becomes a form of care.

Dr. Ruchi Desai is a physician and associate professor at the VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is a hematologist/oncologist  and is well known in the central Virginia medical community and nationally as an expert in myeloproliferative neoplasms, cancer and thrombosis, and aplastic anemia. She serves on various panels locally and nationally, including heading the Myeloid Neoplasms Disease Working group at VCU, a member of the ECOG/ACRIN clonal hematopoiesis working group, the MPN research consortium, and the ASH Aplastic Anemia Guidelines Panel. Her passion is to advance the diagnosis, treatment, and medical knowledge for all patients with hematologic disorders.

Prior to coming to VCU, she earned a bachelor’s of science in Chemical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, a medical degree from the Penn State University College of Medicine, and completed a fellowship in heme-onc at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida. 

Outside of work, Dr. Desai lives in Glen Allen with her husband and enjoys gardening and hopes to have her garden bloom all year around. She can be found hiking the trails of the Virginia Blue Ridge Mountains.

Jewish Family Services of Richmond, joined us to share about the work of 175 years, exceptional guidance and support to individuals and families of all ages, faiths, and income levels through the work of care, counseling and adoption services.  

Robin Abbott joined Jewish Family Services-Richmond, a not-for-profit social services agency, In January 2024 as the Chief Administrative Officer. In her role, she is charged with ensuring the business has effective marketing, compliance, and administrative procedures to meet the agencies vision and values. Prior to joining JFS, Robin spent over 30 years in the senior living industry, most recently serving as an Assisted Living and Nursing Home Administrator. She holds an undergraduate degree from Radford University and a master’s degree in business administration from Averett University. When not working, she loves to travel with her husband, socialize with family and friends, read and love on her beagle, Jeter!

Dr Joseph Mikhael is a Professor in the Clinical Genomics and Therapeutics Division at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope Cancer Center. He is also the Chief Medical Officer of the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) and Director of Myeloma research at the HonorHealth Research Institute. Dr Mikhael specializes clinically in plasma cell disorders, namely multiple myeloma, amyloidosis, and Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia. He is the PI of many clinical trials, primarily in relapsed multiple myeloma, and his other clinical research interests include pharmaco-economics, communication skills, and media relations. Dr. Mikhael also serves as the Treasurer on the executive of the American Society of Hematology. 

Dr Mikhael has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles in these fields and lectures internationally on a regular basis.  Dr. Mikhael is deeply committed to health disparities in myeloma and leads the diversity efforts of the IMF, namely the M-Power project in the African American community.  He is also the chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council at TGen.  Dr. Mikhael is heavily involved in training future researchers and mentors junior faculty worldwide.  He also spends nearly 20% of his time in the third world developing collaborations in myeloma and finding ways to enhance access to novel agents.

B. Cameron Webb, MD, JD, was appointed State Health Commissioner for the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) by Governor Abigail Spanberger. Dr. Webb is a board-certified internal medicine physician, attorney, and public health expert who works at the intersection of health and social justice. As a native of Spotsylvania and a champion for health equity, Dr. Webb is honored to serve the Commonwealth in a public health capacity.

Dr. Webb has a wealth of experience in public health policy and direct patient care. Dr. Webb’s previous positions include serving as a White House Fellow during both the Obama and Trump administrations. Later, he served as a Senior Advisor in the White House Office of COVID-19 Response during the Biden administration. In addition to COVID-19, he also advised on other issues, including public health policy, access to care, and prescription drug pricing.

Before coming to VDH, Dr. Webb was an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Public Health Science at the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Medicine and in the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. In these roles, he saw patients as a general internist, taught students, and served as the founding director of UVA’s Health Equity, Law and Policy Research Laboratory. He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of Doctors for America, the National Medical Association’s Board of Trustees, and the Virginia Board of Medical Assistance Services.

Dr. Webb received an undergraduate degree in interdisciplinary studies at UVA. He received a Doctor of Medicine degree from Wake Forest School of Medicine and completed his residency at New-York Presbyterian Hospital. He also received a Juris Doctorate degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.  Dr. Webb’s wife, Leigh-Ann, is an emergency room physician. They have two children, and reside in Charlottesville. Dr. Webb has coached youth basketball since 2021, where he is affectionately known as Coach Cam.

Dr. Tashima Lambert Giles is an Assistant Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Virginia Commonwealth University Health System. She received her undergraduate degree from The University of Virginia, completed medical school at Temple University School of Medicine, and completed her OBGYN training at Duke University Medical Center. She was a National Health Service Corps scholar and repaid these years of service at Unity Health Care and Howard University Hospital in Washington, DC prior to joining staff at VCU. Here at VCU she serves as a Career Advisor for medical students interested in surgical specialties and is deeply committed to the service of marginalized patient populations and to training future medical professionals that offer patient-centered care.

Janice Sackey McGirt is a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in Pediatric Primary Care. She received her Bachelors of Science in Biology from Elon University and her Bachelors of Nursing and Masters of Pediatric Nursing in Primary Care from Emory University. She spent nearly a decade of work in private practice pediatrics before she transitioned to teaching and working at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. There, she serves as an Instructor at the Uniformed Services University as well seeing patients in the Outpatient Pediatric Primary Care Medical Home Clinic. She most enjoys partnering with families in their children’s health from birth through adolescence with a particular interest in the preschool and school age groups. Her work with mentoring medical students, pediatric residents and the like greatly enhances her clinical skills, but also nurtures our future generation of clinicians.

In a world where headlines, hashtags and AI-generated content flood our screens, discerning what's true has never been more important - or more complex.  In this session we will explore and learn from Lisa Mangenello on how we can be better equipped to navigate today's digital landscape with wisdom, integrity and a commitment to truth.  

About the Speaker: Lisa Manganello has been a librarian at South Brunswick High School for the past seventeen years, where she was recognized as Educator of the Year in 2015.  An active member of the New Jersey Association of School Librarians, Lisa presents regularly on information literacy.  Recent presentations include Now What?: Information Literacy Lessons for the High School Library, Diverse Readers, Diverse Books: New Titles to Build a Culture of Reading, and Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Information Literacy with your Librarian.  In January 2024, she published an article titled “Information Literacy begins in your school library” in NJEA Review Magazine.  Partnering with Dr. Joyce Valenza, Professor of Information Science at Rutgers University, Lisa helped to develop the New Jersey Open Library Tour (NJOLT) to give pre-service and practicing librarians opportunities to visit and learn from their colleagues throughout the state.  She is passionate about sharing her information literacy lessons with other educators and spotlighting the value of school librarians. She has also served as a part-time lecturer at Rutgers University, where she helped to develop a course on school library climate and culture.  

Monica Brown, WHNP-BC and Erika N. Brown, RN both speak about the limitations and pain points in endometrial cancer and the increase in rates compared to other cancers.

Danielle Green, a VCU Health patient who underwent two minimally invasive surgeries – including one with a robot – and successfully donated her kidney and part of her liver. Dr. Thelma Ramsey-Bryant, serves as principal of John L. Costley Middle School in East Orange, New Jersey, tackling middle school literacy gaps. Dr. Ramsey-Bryant and her team have worked to make remedial reading tasks feel age-appropriate and to identify connections to student behavior.

Dr. James N. Weinstein, who joined Microsoft in July 2018 as Senior Vice President, Microsoft Health, leading strategy and innovation and today, leads global health access efforts, discussed the role of AI in Healthcare and how the tool can inform care for providers and patients.

Alicia Collier and Mindy Fast led the Greater RVA Multiple Myeloma Support Group. Facts & Faith Fridays Founders and leaders Dr. Robert Winn, Director VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, Rudene Mercer Haynes J.D, Founder FFF, and Rev. Dr. Herbert Ponder, FFF Clergy Coordinator, Pastor, Mount Tabor Baptist Church. People learned more about the Greater RVA Multiple Myeloma Support Group & M-Power Richmond. People heard from FFF founders and leaders Dr. Robert Winn, Rudene Mercer Haynes, and Rev. Dr. Herbert Ponder.

Dr. David P. Turner, PhD -  Dr. Turner is a cancer survivor and scientific researcher. He is interim Co-Director of Community Outreach and Control for the Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center and Vice-Chair of Research and Innovation for the Dept Surgery at VCU. He completed his Honors Science Degree in Molecular Biology and Doctorate in Biochemistry at the University of Newcastle in the United Kingdom. Dr. Turner is committed to engaging with the community and today will discuss a different approach to demystifying how diet and lifestyle can influence cancer prevention, treatment and survivorship.