The Surgical Pathology Fellowship draws trainees from across the U.S. and around the world. While all our trainees have a love of learning and a compassionate approach to patient care, they come from diverse backgrounds, family status, and professional and personal interests. Meet our current fellow and learn about their experience in the program.

Sameer Chhetri Aryal, M.B.B.S.

Medical school: KIST Medical College, Patan, Nepal
Residency: Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI 

What drew you to our program? I was drawn to the program because of the diverse array of neoplastic and non-neoplastic pathologic material due to the institution's high case volume. The program's curricular structure of rotating through frozen section as well as electives of my choice in subspecialty was also appealing to me.

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? I am most excited about the surgical programs high specimen volume. This along with the extensive digital pathology resources for trainees has enhanced my educational experience.

Mariam Ghafoor, M.B.B.S.

Medical school: Army Medical College, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan
Residency: Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA

What drew you to our program? What drew me to Surgical Pathology program at Mayo Clinic was the state-of-the-art training hospital where I get to see cases from all over the world. Additionally, the opportunity to learn from great mentors who inspire you every day to achieve professional excellence was another huge factor.

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? I continue to be excited about the diversity of cases I see here at Mayo Clinic which has helped expand my diagnostic skills. As a result, I believe the experience I gain here will equip me with the necessary skills to practice anywhere with efficiency.

Hans-Magne Hamnvag, M.D.

Medical school: Pozan University of Medical Sciences, Pozan, Poland
Residency: Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, IL

What drew you to our program? The high volume and variety of cases that you see during the frozen rotation and the ability to choose electives within subspecialties that you want to focus on drew me to the Surgical Pathology fellowship at Mayo Clinic. Also, the program came highly recommended from people I know that went through the training themselves. 

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? I am most excited about having the opportunity to learn from experts within a variety of subspecialties during my frozen rotation and to focus my elective time on medical renal pathology.

Kiran, M.B.B.S.

Medical school: Ghulam Muhammad Mahar Medical College, Sukkur, Sindh, Pakistan 
Residency: Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell at Staten Island University Hospital Program, Staten Island, NY

What drew you to our program? The Mayo Clinic Surgical Pathology program stood out to me as an exceptional place to grow my knowledge and skills due to its strong tradition of teaching, global case consultations, and research excellence. Mentorship from renowned pathology experts at Mayo Clinic will provide me a solid foundation for a rewarding career going forward.

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? I am most excited about the opportunity to train in Mayo Clinic's Frozen Section Lab where I will be exposed to a high volume of diverse and complex cases. I am particularly eager to refine my diagnostic skills, contribute to meaningful research, and collaborate with a multidisciplinary team to advance the field of surgical pathology. The opportunity to be part of such a dynamic and intellectually stimulating environment is truly inspiring.

Roopa Kumari, M.B.B.S.

Medical school: Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Karachi, Pakistan
Residency: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai West/Morningside, NY 

What drew you to our program? The Mayo Clinic Surgical Pathology Fellowship offers unique curriculum combining general surgical and subspecialty sign-outs. Its high volume, multidisciplinary frozen section service provides unparalleled experience across all surgical pathology programs.

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? The diverse culture among trainees and faculty, along with a broad range of unique consult cases and well-structured educational conferences, provides an enriching learning environment. This experience helps me refine my skills and prepare for real-world pathology challenges.

Michael McCarthy, M.D.

Medical school: Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA
Residency: Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

What drew you to our program? I thoroughly enjoyed my previous training at Mayo Clinic (AP/CP residency), particularly the frozen section practice. The latter allows for near instantaneous macroscopic-microscopic correlation, close communication with our clinical colleagues, a wide variety of cases, and provides insight into lab operations. I consider my time here to be invaluable and have no doubt in my mind that I will be a competent pathologist.   

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? Aside from the frozen section practice, I have found the elective consult rotations to be particularly enlightening. As a consult practice, we see all the “zebras” and “unicorns” on a weekly, if not daily, basis. Additionally, research opportunities abound and there is no lack of mentorship. 

Mariel Molina Nunez, M.D.

Medical school: Universidad de Carabobo, Valencia, Venezuela
Residency: Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI

What drew you to our program? The complexity and variety of cases in the Surgical Pathology Fellowship and the fast pace learning environment of the frozen section suite is what attracted me to the fellowship. 

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? To interact and learn from a multidisciplinary team while also having access to cutting-edge research/technology. On a personal note, I was excited to see the historic landmarks of the institution.

Josh Peterson, M.D.

Medical school: University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
Residency: University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX

What drew you to our program? As a surgical pathologist, one of my most challenging responsibilities will be accurate interpretation of frozen sections.  Mayo Clinic offers, by far, the best frozen section training experience available.  Additionally, we spend half of our fellowship in subspecialty consult electives, evaluating the nation's most challenging cases together with world experts.  Mayo is the perfect place for fellowship training.

What are you most excited about experiencing during your fellowship? I am most excited about becoming capable and confident in the evaluation of frozen sections, and working side-by-side with pathologists who practice Mayo's creed, "the needs of the patient come first".