Hedvig Hricak, MD, PhD

2008-2009 BCRF Project:
(made possible by generous support from The Estée Lauder Field)

Breast cancer incidence in South East Europe (SEE) is the third highest in the world. As a result of the funding from the BCRF program and global teamwork efforts, Croatia began breast cancer screening in October 2006 and Serbia will begin breast cancer screening in January 2009. The translation of the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) into Russian will be complete by September 2008; this is critical as it is a requirement for the initiation of clinical breast cancer imaging research and data collection in Russia.

Over the coming year, Dr. Hricak and her colleagues plan to continue their work in South East Europe and to expand the program to include other areas of the world; they are piloting this concept by training a visiting radiologist from China. The researchers believe that by working together with BCRF they can make a global impact on clinical breast cancer imaging research and data collection.

Mid-year Progress Report:
The translations of the BI-RADS lexicon into Croatian and Russian made possible through the BCRF program will improve interpretation of breast imaging studies, facilitate research on the diagnostic value of breast imaging (i.e., mammography, ultrasound, and MRI) findings, and improve communication between radiologists and referring clinicians in Eastern Europe. Dr. Hircak's collaborative programs for training, research and clinical mentorship, drawing on the faculty and infrastructure of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the support of Eastern European imaging leaders, and the involvement of the European Congress of Radiology, provide a foundation for disseminating knowledge about breast cancer detection and diagnosis to other Eastern European countries. In light of the success of the BCRF program to date, they have expanded it to include other areas of the world, enabling the researchers to assess the global applicability of the BI-RADS lexicon. They have piloted this concept by training a visiting radiologist from China, who has begun translating the BI-RADS lexicon into Mandarin. They believe that by continuing this work with the BCRF, the use of breast cancer imaging can be improved and expanded in clinical practice and clinical research around the world.

Bio:
Hedvig Hricak is Chairman of the Department of Radiology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. She holds a senior position within the Program of Molecular and Pharmacology Therapeutics at the Sloan-Kettering Institute and is Professor of Radiology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

She earned her MD degree from the University of Zagreb and her Dr. Med. Sc. from the Karolinska Institute. Previously, she was a professor of radiology, radiation oncology, urology and gynecology at the University of California at San Francisco and was the chief of the abdominal section of the Department of Radiology at the UCSF Medical Center. She has helped develop applications in ultrasound, MR, and CT for gynecological cancer as well as MR and MR spectroscopy for prostate cancer. She continues to investigate diagnostic methods for cancer detection, staging, and management and is involved in developing clinical approaches for molecular imaging of cancer.

Dr. Hricak is President-Elect and Secretary Treasurer of the Board of Directors of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). She served as President of the Society for Advancement of Women's Imaging (1997-1999), President of the California Academy of Medicine (1999), and President of the Society of Uroradiology (2000-2003). She was a member of the board of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and now serves on the Executive board of the Academy of Radiology Research. She is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies and a fellow of the American College of Radiology, the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, and the Society of Uroradiology.

Dr. Hricak has authored or co-authored 328 peer-reviewed original research articles, 150 review/ editorial articles, and more than 130 book chapters. She has given 135 named or keynote lectures and has been a visiting professor at more than 30 institutions worldwide. In recognition of her career accomplishments, she has received the Marie Curie Award of the American Association of Women Radiologists, the gold medals of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and the Association of University Radiologists, the Béclère medal of the International Society of Radiology, and the Morocco Medal of Merit. She is an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Radiologists and an honorary member of the British Institute of Radiology, German Radiological Society, Austrian Roentgen Society, Croatian Society of Radiology, Journées Françaises de Radiologie and the Swedish Society of Medical Radiology. In 2005 she was awarded an honorary doctorate in medicine from Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany.