The ”Disruptive Dozen” results from interviews of one hundred Mass General Brigham senior Harvard faculty followed by a rigorous selection process to identify the twelve mostly likely to have significant impact on healthcare by end of 2021.

Thomas Sequist, MD

Chief Patient Experience and Equity Officer, PHS; Professor of Medicine and Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School

2.

Harnessing Technology to Reduce Health Disparities

Health is determined not just by genes, diet, and exercise, but also by the environments where people live, learn, work, and play. New technologies are emerging to help reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes.

Watch the #2 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Orhun Muratoglu, PhD

Alan Gary Scholar, Director Harris Orthopaedics Lab, MGH; Professor, Harvard Medical School

4.

Solving the Problem of Infection in Total Joint Replacements

Total joint replacement is an increasingly common procedure. For most patients, recovery is uneventful and lasts a few months, but some experience a much more complicated and painful journey due to infection in the artificial joint. Find out how researchers are harnessing technology to help address this problem.

Watch the #4 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Calum MacRae, MD, PhD

Vice Chair for Scientific Innovation, Department of Medicine, BH; Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

3.

Digital Management of Chronic Disease

Chronic diseases are a major challenge for patients and health care systems alike. In 2016, the U.S. spent over a trillion dollars caring for patients with heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other chronic conditions. Find out how technology could help improve care for these patients — and lower costs.

Watch the #3 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

David Scadden, MD

Director, Center for Regenerative Medicine, MGH; Co-Director, Harvard Stem Cell Institute; Gerald and Darlene Jordan Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

7.

New Therapeutic Options for Sickle Cell Disease

Millions of people worldwide suffer from sickle cell disease. While the cause of this debilitating blood disorder has been known for half a century, only two drugs are currently available to treat it. New developments are on the horizon that could help transform the management of a disease that has too often been overlooked.

Watch the #7 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Patricia Musolino, MD, PhD

Co-Director Pediatric Cerebrovascular Service, MGH; Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

6.

Gene Therapies Transform Treatment of Rare, Devastating Diseases

The emergence of the first gene therapies for clinical use signaled a watershed moment in the history of medicine. This treatment modality will do ever more in the coming year for patients, especially those with rare genetic conditions.

Watch the #6 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Joan Miller, MD

Chief of Ophthalmology, MEE and MGH; Ophthalmologist-in-Chief, BH; David Glendenning Cogan Professor of Ophthalmology and Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School

5.

New Tools to Help Aging Eyes and Ears

Like many parts of the body, the eyes and ears can deteriorate with age, making them vulnerable to disease and loss of sensory functions. Find out how new technologies and treatments could help patients and clinicians better protect these organs from age-related decline.

Watch the #5 disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Astrid Weins, MD, PhD

Associate Pathologist, Brigham Health; Assistant Professor, Pathology, Harvard Medical School

10.

Making Cells Larger to See Them More Clearly

Visualizing cells at high-resolution is a cornerstone of modern biology and medicine. For more than a century, as scientists yearned to observe biological structures with greater power and clarity, they built more advanced microscopes. Yet today, even those sophisticated tools have limits. See how researchers are developing a innovative new approach to cell visualization.

Watch the third disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Dennis Selkoe, MD

Co-Director of the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Diseases, Brigham Health; Vincent and Stella Coates Professor of Neurologic Diseases, Harvard Medical School

9.

First Disease-Modifying Therapy for Alzheimer’s Disease

The world lacks a meaningful treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive, debilitating neurodegenerative condition that affects millions across the globe. But that could change later this year, when the FDA is expected to weigh in on a novel drug that targets clumps of protein in the brain known as amyloid plaques. If approved, the drug would mark the first disease-modifying therapy for Alzheimer’s disease.

Watch the fourth disruptive technology in a series of 12.

Leonardo Riella, MD, PhD

Medical Director, Vascularized Composite Tissue Transplantation, Brigham Health; Associate Physician, Harvard Medical School

8.

Keeping Transplant Organs Fresher for Longer

Over 120,000 people in this country are now waiting for an organ transplant. What if it were possible to increase the time that organs can be safely stored outside the body prior to transplantation? Scientists are working to drive innovation in this area in an effort to expand the pool of donor organs available for those who need them.

Watch the fifth disruptive technology in a series of 12.