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Sanja Dacic, MD, PhD

Professor of Pathology; Vice Chair and Director of Anatomic Pathology, Pathology; Medical Director, Tumor Profiling Laboratory

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Sanja Dacic, MD, PhD

Appointments

Biography

Sanja Dacic, MD, PhD, MSc, an internationally renowned and highly accomplished leader in anatomic pathology, assumed the position of Vice Chair and Director of Anatomic Pathology in the Department of Pathology at Yale School of Medicine on May 1, 2022. She is also Professor of Pathology and Medical Director of the Tumor Profiling Lab (TPL)

Dr. Dacic came to Yale from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was Professor of Pathology; Director of Anatomic Pathology at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital; Director of the Thoracic Pathology Center of Excellence; and Director of the FISH laboratory. She previously was Director of the Molecular Anatomic Pathology Laboratory at UPMC.

Dr. Dacic received her medical and Doctor of Philosophy degrees at the School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, in Zagreb, Croatia, and completed her residency training at the University of Pittsburgh.

Her research focuses on diagnostic pulmonary and molecular pathology and the development of prognostic biomarkers. She is a key leader of impactful basic and translational research projects in lung cancer and pleural mesotheliomas, which have resulted in hundreds of peer-reviewed scientific articles, practice guidelines, book chapters, and reviews.

Dr. Dacic is a co-author of the original and revised College of American Pathologists/International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)/Association for Molecular Pathology guidelines for molecular testing in lung cancer. In 2020, she was awarded the IASLC Award for Translational Research. She was a member of the Editorial Board for the 5th WHO Classification of Thoracic Tumors (2019). Dr. Dacic is a deputy editor in chief of Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine and serves on the editorial boards of high impact journals.

Dr. Dacic has served as a board member of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP), as well as on its Education Committee and as a member and chair of its Young Investigators Awards Committee. She currently serves as president of the Pulmonary Pathology Society and is a member of the U.S. and Canadian Mesothelioma Group, the International Mesothelioma Panel, and the IASLC Pathology Committee.

Education & Training

  • Fellowship
    University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2002)
  • Chief Resident
    University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2001)
  • Residency
    University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2001)
  • PhD
    University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Pathology (1998)
  • Postdoctoral Fellowship
    University of Connecticut Health Center (1997)
  • MSc
    University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Experimental Pharmacology (1993)
  • MD
    University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Medicine (1990)

Certifications

  • Board Certification
    AB of Pathology, Anatomic Pathology (2002)

Honors & Recognition

AwardAwarding OrganizationDate
Fred R. Hirsch Lectureship Award for Translational ResearchInternational Association for the Study of Lung Cancer2020
Young Investigator AwardArthur Purdy Stout Society2011
Daljit and Elaine Sarkaria LectureUCLA Department of Pathology2010
Research Day Award - Clinical Research CategoryUniversity of Pittsburgh Medical Center Department of Pathology2004
Fellowship in Genitourinary PathologyAmerican Registry of Pathology/ Armed Forces Institute of Pathology2000
Best World Wide Web Case ReportUniversity of Pittsburgh Medical Center Department of Pathology2000
International Cancer Technology Transfer Fellowship (ICRETT)International Union Against Cancer (UICC)1994

Departments & Organizations