I am humbled to receive the ASGE Distinguished Endoscopic Research Mentoring Award and would like to express my sincere gratitude to the ASGE for this career milestone award. I am extremely grateful for the outstanding mentorship I have received throughout my career. The unwavering support of my mentors inspires me every single day to ‘pay it forward’ and pave the path for the next generation of endoscopists. My passion, enthusiasm and desire to remain on this path is maintained by my relationships with my mentees. I will cherish these friendships forever and honored to be a part of their fantastic journey. I also want to acknowledge the role Hugo Rosen has played in my career, who tragically passed away at the end of 2021. He was instrumental in launching my academic career at the University of Colorado and truly embodied the virtues of a mentor; his legacy will live on in me and all those he influenced. Above all, I am grateful for my parents, my most influential mentors, who have always inspired me to dream big and my wife and twins for their sacrifices, patience, and compassion.
Sachin Wani is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and serves as the Vice-Chair in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. He is the Medical Director of the Esophageal and Gastric Center and also serves as the co-Director of the GI Outcomes Research Group. He received his medical school training at the University of Mumbai – The Padmashree Dr. D. Y. Patil Medical College. He completed his GI fellowship at the University of Kansas followed by an advanced endoscopy fellowship at the Washington University in Saint Louis.
His research has focused on various aspects related to Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma and has developed a successful track record of conducting epidemiologic studies that have defined the natural history of Barrett’s esophagus and related dysplasia, conducting studies that have established the effectiveness and safety of endoscopic eradication therapies, studies that have focused on improving the effectiveness of screening and surveillance practices along with improving the quality of endoscopy performed for this patient population. He has served as the primary or senior author for national GI society guidelines related to Barrett’s esophagus. His research has also addressed training in endoscopy and outcomes research in interventional endoscopy. He has authored greater than 250 publications in these areas. His research is funded by National Institute of Health, multiple GI societies, University of Colorado, industry and private foundations. He is currently the principal investigator on multiple trials including the SURVENT trial funded by the NIDDK/NIH. He has served on several national committees and recently chaired the ASGE Standards of Practice committee. He has served as the Course Director for several conferences including the Rocky Mountain Interventional Endoscopy Course.
Dr. Wani is committed to mentoring and has served as a mentor for many researchers, including medical students and residents, GI fellows and junior faculty members. He serves as the co-PI of the University of Colorado T32 training grant.