The UW Department of Radiology will proudly host Christopher Hess, MD, PhD as the keynote speaker for the annual Zachary Clark Radiology Research Symposium on Saturday, April 25, 2026. His presentation, “The Innovator’s Mindset in Medical Imaging,” will draw upon his experience as a renowned neuroradiologist specializing in MRI, a driver of sustainability in the field, and the chair of the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
Dr. Hess, the Alexander R. Margulis Distinguished Professor and Chair, researches the translational application of MR imaging techniques to vascular disease, brain development and degeneration, and epilepsy. He is especially interested in the use of diffusion imaging and ultra-high-field MRI.
In the Radiology article, “MRI of the Brain: What Is Driving Innovation in 2023?”, Dr. Hess reflected on the history of MRI and looked to the future. He noted “In brief, current research themes in brain MRI point to a future with continued technical innovation, greater patient access, higher levels of standardization, and powerful new analytic tools to measure and extract useful information from images.”
While Dr. Hess promotes the power of MRI in patient care, he also advocates lowering its power usage. In a retrospective evaluation of MRI power and energy consumption published in Radiology, he and co-author Sean Woolen, MD discovered that turning off MRIs at night instead of leaving in idle reduced power consumption by 25-to-33 percent.
In addition, he joined Thomas Grist, MD, our former chair, and other national leaders to publish “Sustainability in Radiology: Position Paper and Call to Action from ACR, AOSR, ASR, CAR, CIR, ESR, ESRNM, ISR, IS3R, RANZCR, and RSNA” in 2025. The statement noted “As representatives of radiology societies from across the globe who work closely with industry, and both governmental and non-governmental leaders in multiple capacities, we advocate together for urgent, impactful, and measurable changes to the way we deliver care by further engaging our members, policymakers, industry partners, and our patients.”
“Radiologists face an unprecedented number of opportunities and challenges due to technological advancements, breakthrough research, evolving healthcare systems, and more,” notes Vice Chair of Research Christoph Lee, MD, MS, MBA. “To succeed, we need to be curious, creative and resilient – all aspects of an innovator’s mindset that Dr. Hess will help shape in our trainees and students at the symposium.”
Held annually, the Zachary Clark Radiology Research Symposium celebrates the high-caliber radiology research conducted by our medical students, residents, and fellows. It also embodies the department’s dedication to both research and education.