Helen Shih, MD, MS, MPH - Founder
Dr. Shih has traveled along an unusual path to her current passion in fighting addiction. Born and raised in New Jersey, she attended Brown University where she earned a ScB in Biology. She attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania where she also received an MS in Cellular and Molecular Biology. After a one year internship at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan she went on to receive her residency training in radiation oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). To further develop her skills as a clinical investigator, she earned a MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Shih now serves as the Medical Director of the Francis H. Burr Proton Therapy Center at MGH as well as the Director of the MGH Radiation Oncology Central Nervous System & Eye Treatment Program and Proton Fellowship Program. Dr. Shih is also a LeadBoston alumni. During this 11-month professional development program focused on social responsibility, Dr. Shih received a candid look into Boston's inequities. Through this unique experience she was able to connect with local law enforcement, policymakers, and other leaders. Dr. Shih continues to work with these connections as well as current/recovering addicts to search for answers to the addiction crisis. Click here to read about Dr. Shih's role in addressing substance use disorders at the MGH Cancer Center. |
David Craft, PhD - Secretary
Dr. Craft received his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Brown University. After a four year gap period, which included employment at General Electric Research and Development and Boston Public High Schools, he returned to academia to receive his Ph.D. from MIT in Operations Research. Operations Research is better known as “math for the real world” and focuses on optimization, probability, and mathematical modeling techniques. Dr. Craft has been at MGH since 2004 and is currently an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. He also directs the Optimization and Systems Biology Lab in the Department of Radiation Oncology. His research has two main branches: (1) improving the delivery of radiation to cancer patients and (2) developing machine learning methods to use genomics to personalize cancer patient treatment decisions. The systems biology aspect of the latter project meshes well with the complex network biology of brain chemistry, a key component of the science of addiction. Dr. Craft and Dr. Shih have co-authored several papers on optimizing radiation therapy. |
Sarah Wiley - Digital Content Manager
Sarah studied Health Care Management at Colby-Sawyer College and received her B.S in 2015. Shortly after, she began working in the Department of Radiation Oncology at MGH where she met Dr. Shih. Currently, Sarah serves as the Communications and Project Manager for the department. Like so many people today, Sarah has a personal connection to the battle against addiction as she lost a friend to an overdose. |