Dr. Savanah Gisriel’s Passion for Science Fueled Her Wonder

Born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, Savanah Gisriel, MD, MPH, grew up with interests in musical theatre and science.

While attending Arizona State University (ASU), Dr. Gisriel wanted to balance her love for the two subjects.

“I had my scientific interests and did vocal music performance,” Dr. Gisriel said. “I knew I could make music my hobby and have medicine as my main career, but I couldn’t see it the other way around; and it’s worked out for me pretty well.”

Dr. Gisriel completed her undergraduate degree at Arizona State University majoring in biochemistry with a minor in music performance.

She knew she wanted to pursue medical school. With the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix being so close to family, it was the perfect route for her to pursue medicine and give back to the community she grew up in.

While attending medical school, Dr. Gisriel was introduced to pathology and knew it was the right specialty for her.

“Pathology really fit my personality more than all of the other specialties,” Dr. Gisriel said. “Our job is to be communicators within the hospital because we have to indicate diagnoses and make sure the patient can be treated correctly.”

As a first-generation college student, Dr. Gisriel faced struggles in navigating financial aid and other systems. She learned to communicate with multiple units to ensure her needs and responsibilities were met.

“Being a first-generation student, you have to figure out a lot of things on your own,” Dr. Gisriel said. “However, I had a lot of friends and advisors at the medical school who helped me, so it ended up not being too bad of a challenge.”

During her time at medical school, Dr. Gisriel said the U of A College of Medicine – Phoenix’s clinically oriented training helped prepare her to effectively communicate with patients.

“By the time I got to my third year, I felt comfortable talking to patients and felt comfortable in a hospital setting,” Dr. Gisriel said. “Even as a pathologist, I found it incredibly useful because it taught me communication skills and knowing how to communicate diagnoses.”

After graduating from medical school in 2019, she started residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at Yale University. She then chose to enter a one-year fellowship at Yale, which she will complete in 2024.

“Working at Yale New Haven Hospital for the past five years has been a privilege,” Dr. Gisriel said. “Meeting people from different universities and different countries allows for other perspectives on how to care for somebody. It’s a collaborative environment, and I’m happy to be a part of it.”

Dr. Gisriel enjoys performing clinical research and working with her colleagues to identify new approaches to improve patient outcomes.

“Being a medical pathologist essentially entails diagnosing neoplastic and non-neoplastic hematologic disorders, with my focus being more on neoplastic,” Dr. Gisriel said. “I enjoy diagnosing lymphomas and leukemias.”

For the future of pathology, Dr. Gisriel said she sees digital pathology as an innovation on the horizon for the specialty.

“We are scanning a lot of our slides already, and it’s only going to keep growing,” Dr. Gisriel said. “It allows for more collaborations not only within university departments, but also if you need consultation from a world expert elsewhere, you could theoretically show the slide to them remotely.”

Additionally, Dr. Gisriel believes that AI programs can screen some cases and improve efficiency for pathologists.

One piece of advice she offered to current and former students is to prioritize friends and family.

“If I don’t set aside time to do things I love with loved ones, I start getting a bit worn out,” Dr. Gisriel said. “It’s good to check in on yourself and make sure you’re prioritizing time with loved ones, especially on harder days.”

Practitioners like Dr. Gisriel are vital to the community of Arizona. By donating to the University of Arizona’s Fuel Wonder campaign, an investment is made not only to support future physicians, but also future patients.