Nuzhat A. Ahmad
· Assistant ProfessorUniversity of Pennsylvania · Rehabilitation Medicine
Active 1987–2026
About
Nuzhat A. Ahmad, MD, is a Professor of Medicine in the Department of Medicine (Gastroenterology) at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. She serves as the Associate Director of Endoscopy and the Director of Endoscopy Continuous Quality Improvement at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Ahmad is also the Medical Residency Director for Gastroenterology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Her clinical expertise focuses on diseases of the pancreas and biliary system, endoscopic ultrasound, and ERCP. She holds leadership roles including Co-Director of the Penn Medicine Pancreatic Cyst Program and the Quality Improvement and Delivery Sciences (QUIDS) Program, as well as Vice Chief of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Ahmad's contributions include advancing endoscopic techniques and quality improvement initiatives in gastroenterology.
Research topics
- Gastroenterology
- Internal medicine
- Medicine
- Family medicine
- Virology
Selected publications
Gastroenterology · 2026-05-01
articleGastrointestinal Endoscopy · 2026-05-01
articleJournal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology · 2025-02-19
articleOpen accessbioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2025-10-03
preprintOpen accessAbstract An accumulating body of evidence suggests carriers of a pathogenic germline variant (PGV) in BRCA1 or BRCA2 have increased gastric cancer (GC) risk. BRCA1 and BRCA2 are tumor suppressor genes involved in promoting homologous recombination to repair double-stranded DNA breaks. The aim of this investigation was to identify differences within the gastric epithelium and in patient-derived gastric organoids (PDGOs) between BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers and non-carriers to determine if evidence of early gastric carcinogenesis exists amongst these carriers. First, using gastric epithelial biopsies, BRCA2 carriers were found to harbor higher expression of the proliferative marker Ki-67 within the antral gastric epithelium and strikingly, biopsies from both BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers displayed a marked increase in double-stranded DNA damage. These results were further explored using PDGOs, where a growth advantage was observed for both BRCA1 and BRCA2 PDGOs compared to non-carrier PDGOs. Furthermore, both BRCA1 and BRCA2 PDGOs displayed a more pronounced enhancement of Ki-67 expression as well as increased double stranded DNA damage compared to non-carrier PDGOs. Importantly, none of the PDGOs showed signs of BRCA1 or BRCA2 loss of heterozygosity, potentially indicating a haploinsufficient phenotype. Taken together, these novel findings suggest that haploinsufficiency in BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers may lead to DNA damage in the gastric epithelium, which may serve as an early event contributing to GC development.
Personalized Surveillance Intervals for Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasm (IPMN)
Annals of Surgery · 2025-03-21 · 3 citations
articleOpen accessOBJECTIVE: The aim was to build a calculator for personalized surveillance of BD-IPMNs. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: The interval time for surveillance of low-risk branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (BD-IPMNs) has not been established yet. METHODS: The study included an international cohort of BD-IPMNs without worrisome features (WFs) or high-risk stigmata (HRS). IPMN evolution was defined as the occurrence of HRS or WFs. The derivation cohort comprised 60% of patients. The validation group comprised the remaining patients. A parametric survival model was developed in the derivation cohort using Akaike (AIC) and Bayesian (BIC) information criteria and c-index. A "k-fold" validation was used to measure the covariate effect on the accelerated failure time. Two models ("standard" and "conservative") were built and validated using the second cohort. RESULTS: The derivation and validation cohorts included 1,992 and 1,119 BD-IPMNs. The lognormal distribution best fitted the derivation cohort (AIC=2673; BIC=2718). The pooled c-index was 0.689 (0.668 to 0.718, 95%CI). The factors reducing the time needed for IPMN evolution were age [- 2% (-1% to -3%) for each year] and cyst size [-2% (0% to -3%); for each mm]. The "conservative" model, called PANORAMA, was the only one that correctly classified the validation cohort (c-index 0.712 vs. 0.696; P=0.072). CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE: The development of WF and HRS is influenced by the patient's age and cyst size. After a prudential first control at six months, repeating a semestral/annual follow-up in this time frame could be too tight.
Gastroenterology · 2025-05-01
articleGastroenterology · 2025-05-01
articleSenior authorPancreatology · 2025-10-31
articleGastrointestinal Endoscopy · 2025-10-20 · 2 citations
articleOpen accessBACKGROUND AND AIMS: Piecemeal endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is the standard of care for large, nonpedunculated colon polyps but is associated with recurrence rates of 9% to 31%. Current guidelines recommend 6-month surveillance for all patients, although this may not be necessary for lower-risk cases. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent piecemeal EMR of ≥20-mm colon polyps between 2018 and 2021. Patients were stratified into 6- or 12-month surveillance groups based on polyp features. Recurrence rates and associated factors were compared. RESULTS: Among 193 patients, recurrence was higher in the 6-month (31.5%) than in the 12-month group (14.3%, P < .05). Among patients with recurrence, the 6-month follow-up group had more tubulovillous adenomas (P < .05) on index colonoscopy. Tubulovillous histology in the initial polyp was the only factor associated with recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: A risk-stratified approach may safely extend surveillance to 12 months for lower-risk patients after piecemeal EMR, reducing unnecessary procedures without compromising care.
Cancer Prevention Research · 2024-04-19
articleOpen accessBRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers may be at increased risk for gastric cancer; however, the mechanisms of gastric carcinogenesis remain poorly understood. We sought to determine the prevalence of gastric cancer risk factors Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM) among BRCA1/2 carriers to gain insight into the pathogenesis of gastric cancer in this population. A total of 100 unselected BRCA1/2 carriers who underwent endoscopic ultrasound from March 2022 to March 2023 underwent concomitant upper endoscopy with nontargeted gastric antrum and body biopsies. The study population (70% women; mean age 60.1 years) included 66% BRCA2 carriers. H. pylori was detected in one (1%) individual, 7 (7%) had GIM, 2 (2%) had autoimmune atrophic gastritis, and no gastric cancers were diagnosed. Among BRCA1/2 carriers, H. pylori prevalence was low and GIM prevalence was similar to that in the general population; however, identification of H. pylori or GIM may help inform future gastric cancer risk management strategies in BRCA1/2 carriers. Prevention Relevance: Evaluating the burden of H. pylori infection and GIM among BRCA1/2 carriers is warranted to better understand the mechanisms of gastric carcinogenesis and to help inform risk management strategies for gastric cancer among this at-risk population.
Frequent coauthors
- 117 shared
Gregory G. Ginsberg
- 116 shared
Michael L. Kochman
- 56 shared
Vinay Chandrasekhara
- 34 shared
William R. Brugge
Harvard University
- 29 shared
Steven A. Edmundowicz
- 28 shared
Neeraj Kaushik
- 28 shared
Sydney Finkelstein
Medpace (United States)
- 28 shared
Asif Khalid
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Education
- 1990
M.D.
Dow Medical College
- 1983
Other
St. Joseph College
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