About

Dr. Mark S. Chen is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, starting July 1, 2026. His research broadly focuses on stress and psychopathology across the lifespan, with a central interest in the transdiagnostic roles of emotion and emotion regulation processes. His work investigates how these processes are shaped by adverse life experiences, how their function varies across situational and cultural contexts, and how to model flexible, context-sensitive regulatory behaviors to improve interventions for individuals with depression and anxiety disorders. Dr. Chen's multidisciplinary approach leverages a range of methods, including laboratory experiments, physiological measures, large-scale longitudinal studies, and ecological momentary assessments using smartphones and wearables. His research encompasses both clinical and normative populations and involves cross-cultural comparisons through surveys, behavioral tasks, and meta-analyses. He obtained his PhD in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University and completed his clinical internship at Weill Cornell Medical College. Prior to Harvard, he was a Susan Nolen-Hoeksema Postdoctoral Associate at Yale University.

Research topics

• Internal medicine
• Genetics
• Pediatrics
• Medicine
• Pathology
• Intensive care medicine
• Biology
• Cell biology

Selected publications

• Occult obstructive sleep apnea in survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma following radiation therapy: an atypical and under-recognized phenotype

  Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine · 2026-04-16

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Quality-of-Care Measures for Cardio-Oncology

  JACC CardioOncology · 2025-01-07 · 13 citations

  reviewOpen access

  This document serves as a perspective on quality assessments in the discipline of cardio-oncology. We aim to define the current landscape, identify needs for quality and outcome improvements, and propose a roadmap for establishing viable metrics to improve patient care. Specifically, this document: 1) addresses the current lack of measurable high-quality metrics in cardio-oncology and their implications; 2) highlights needs and topic-specific barriers; 3) illustrates the process and application of a measurable quality metric; and 4) provides a framework to demonstrate measurable value for the growing population of patients with cancer and cardiovascular diseases. • The discipline of cardio-oncology has entered into a new era focused on the quantitative as well as the qualitative. • Developing and applying quality metrics in cardio-oncology are essential steps toward improving patient outcomes. • This document serves as a first step in advancing quality metrics in the field.

  PublisherDOI

• Isolated Nonischemic Left Bundle Branch Block Resulting in Heart Failure in Hodgkin Lymphoma Survivors Post-Radiation

  JACC Case Reports · 2025-07-01

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  BACKGROUND: Relatively little is known about the clinical features of left bundle branch block (LBBB) in patients previously treated with chest radiation therapy (RT). CASE SUMMARY: Six long-term Hodgkin lymphoma survivors developed isolated, nonischemic LBBB decades after chest RT. None had prior conduction issues or coronary artery disease on evaluation. We describe in detail 3 patients with new focal LBBB who developed worsening low/normal left ventricular (LV) systolic function and heart failure onset, which improved with cardiac resynchronization therapy. DISCUSSION: Dense calcification of the subaortic/LV outflow tract region was observed on echocardiography, an area included in the RT field overlap for Hodgkin lymphoma and through which the left bundle branch courses after bifurcation from the right bundle. QTc interval prolongation preceded LBBB onset. TAKE-HOME MESSAGES: Patients who received high-dose chest radiation may present with isolated LBBB, without coronary artery disease, decades post-treatment. LBBB may unmask subclinical LV dysfunction and heart failure onset in cancer survivors, which may be reversible with cardiac resynchronization therapy.

  PublisherDOI

• Effect of carvedilol versus placebo on cardiac function in anthracycline-exposed survivors of childhood cancer (PREVENT-HF): a randomised, controlled, phase 2b trial

  The Lancet Oncology · 2024-01-09 · 33 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Trends in Gaps of Care for Congenital Heart Disease Patients: Implications for Social Determinants of Health and Child Opportunity Index

  medRxiv · 2024-02-08

  preprintOpen access

  Abstract Background Lifelong continuity of care is imperative for patients with congenital heart disease (CHD); unfortunately, gaps in care (GIC) are common. Methods All patients aged 0-34 years followed at a pediatric subspecialty hospital (primary location Delaware; satellites covering Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland) with CHD who underwent surgery between January 2003 and May 2020 were included. Patients were categorized as simple, moderate, and complex CHD based on 2018 American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology guidelines. Social determinants of health factors such as age, race, ethnicity, sex, language, insurance status, and Child Opportunity Index based on home address zip code were analyzed. Results Of 2012 CHD patients, a GIC of ≥3 years was identified in 56% (n=1119). The proportion of patients with GIC per year increased for all patients. Multivariable longitudinal models with all CHD patients showed that GIC are increasing for patients who are ≥10.5 years old, have simple CHD, live out of state, live farther from a site of care (hospital or satellite clinics), receive public insurance and/or have less protection with additional insurance plans, and reside in low Child Opportunity Index neighborhoods. A separate model for only moderate/complex CHD patients showed similar findings. Neither longitudinal model showed race/ethnicity as significant for increasing GIC trends. Conclusions GIC have continued to increase with an aging CHD population with social determinants of health factors specifically related to insurance, access, and neighborhood opportunity. Attenuating GIC necessitates standardized practices while simultaneously addressing the impact of SDOH on all CHD patients. Clinical Perspective What is new? This study is the first to examine gaps in care (GIC) trends over time in patients with repaired congenital heart disease (CHD) and found that almost half had GIC. Over 2 decades, GIC are increasing for certain subpopulations of CHD patients based on social determinants of health, including being older, lacking insurance, and residing in low Child Opportunity Index neighborhoods. What Are the Clinical Implications? GIC are worsening in certain subpopulations of CHD patients, including those with low Child Opportunity Index, lack of insurance, or poor access to health care systems. CHD programs must target social determinants of health factors to improve ongoing care and long-term outcomes for all patients.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Cardiac Comorbidity and Exercise Intolerance in Bilateral Lung Transplant Recipients Followed at a Pediatric Center

  Pediatric Cardiology · 2024-10-17 · 2 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Contributions of Germline and Somatic Mosaic Genetics to Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms in Nonsyndromic Individuals

  Journal of the American Heart Association · 2024-07-03 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Background Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Although individuals with family histories of TAA often undergo clinical molecular genetic testing, adults with nonsyndromic TAA are not typically evaluated for genetic causes. We sought to understand the genetic contribution of both germline and somatic mosaic variants in a cohort of adult individuals with nonsyndromic TAA at a single center. Methods and Results One hundred eighty‐one consecutive patients <60 years who presented with nonsyndromic TAA at the Massachusetts General Hospital underwent deep (>500×) targeted sequencing across 114 candidate genes associated with TAA and its related functional pathways. Samples from 354 age‐ and sex‐matched individuals without TAA were also sequenced, with a 2:1 matching. We found significant enrichments for germline (odds ratio [OR], 2.44, P =4.6×10 −6 [95% CI, 1.67–3.58]) and also somatic mosaic variants (OR, 4.71, P =0.026 [95% CI, 1.20–18.43]) between individuals with and without TAA. Likely genetic causes were present in 24% with nonsyndromic TAA, of which 21% arose from germline variants and 3% from somatic mosaic alleles. The 3 most frequently mutated genes in our cohort were FLNA (encoding Filamin A), NOTCH3 (encoding Notch receptor 3), and FBN1 (encoding Fibrillin‐1). There was increased frequency of both missense and loss of function variants in TAA individuals. Conclusions Likely contributory dominant acting genetic variants were found in almost one quarter of nonsyndromic adults with TAA. Our findings suggest a more extensive genetic architecture to TAA than expected and that genetic testing may improve the care and clinical management of adults with nonsyndromic TAA.

  PublisherDOI

• Carvedilol to Improve Cardiac Remodeling in Anthracycline-Exposed Childhood Cancer Survivors

  JACC CardioOncology · 2024-09-17 · 5 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Contributors

  Elsevier eBooks · 2024-03-29

  book-chapter
  PublisherDOI

• Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hypertension in Long-Term Survivors of Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia

  The Journal of Pediatrics · 2024-03-27 · 4 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Suzanne George

  82 shared

• George D. Demetri

  Harvard University

  81 shared

• Jeffrey A. Morgan

  76 shared

• Annick D. Van den Abbeele

  66 shared

• Michael C. Heinrich

  OHSU Knight Cancer Institute

  60 shared

• Christopher L. Corless

  University of Portland

  60 shared

• Robert G. Maki

  University of Pennsylvania

  60 shared

• Charles M. Baum

  Encore Pharmaceuticals (United States)

  60 shared