About us

It is with great pleasure that we launch the Non-invasive Skin Imaging Group of the Americas.

The technology sector has made leaps and bounds over the past decades and this has been mirrored, albeit in slower motion, by substantive changes in diagnostic medicine. Non-invasive tools aiding diagnosis have been the bedrock of modern medicine- from the early stethoscopes to X-rays, and the plethora of modern imaging devices now readily available.

Who are we?
We are a group of dermatologists, pathologists, and scientists who have embraced noninvasive
imaging by either practicing in our clinical practice, teaching, research or being involved in future
development.

What is our mission?
 Embrace -noninvasive imaging techniques in clinical practice 
 Educate- a new generation of clinicians and scientists in noninvasive technology
 Expand- a pool of experts, research, and reimbursements in the field of noninvasive
imaging worldwide

What is noninvasive imaging and its utility in dermatology and pathology?
Skin cancers are the most common malignancies in the U.S with significant morbidity, and
screening is a mainstay service of dermatology providers. The gold standard for diagnosis has
been tissue sampling for microscopic examination. While the latter remains true, we can now
examine skin without biopsy using non-invasive imaging techniques. These techniques have the
potential to improve patient care by reducing unnecessary biopsies. Many non-invasive imaging
devices are available to evaluate skin lesions. They include the well-known dermatologist, as
well as newer devices such as optical coherence tomography, ultrasonically, confocal
microscopy, and multiphoton microscopy.
Additionally, these techniques can be used to image fresh ex vivo tissue, eliminating the need
for time-consuming histopathology and enabling diagnosis at the bedside.

American confocal group

Educate students, residents, fellows and specialists

Expand confocal use, research and reimbursements

Our Structure

Babar Rao

Founding President and Immediate Past-President

Dr. Rao is a Professor of Dermatology and Pathology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical
School and a Clinical Associate Professor of Dermatology at Weill Cornell Medical College. He is
also President of the American Confocal Group and the President and Founder of Non-Invasive
Diagnostic Innovations in Skin (NIDIskin) and EIV Diagnostics. Dr. Rao is board-certified in
dermatology and dermatopathology. He received his medical degree from Rawalpindi Medical
College in Pakistan and completed his residency training in Dermatology at Cornell University
Medical Center, where he was chief resident. Additionally, Dr. Rao has trained at the University of
London, UT Southwestern, New York University, and Rutgers University. His primary research
interests include non-invasive diagnostic tools in dermatology, such as Reflectance Confocal
Microscopy (RCM), and digital pathology, and he has authored over 200 publications and
multiple books on the topics.

Manu Jain

President

Dr. Manu Jain is an Associate Attending Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and an
Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine in the Department of Dermatology. Dr. Jain is as a
Founding Board Member (Vice President) of the American Confocal Group and a Founding
Member of the Cutaneous Imaging Expert Resource Group (AAD). Additionally, she chairs the
session “Photonics in Dermatology and Plastic Surgery” at the Photonics West (SPIE) annual
meeting and contributes as a Board Member of the International Confocal Group. She is the
founder and Course Director of the MSKCC Annual Confocal CME-accredited course. Dr. Jain is
a pathologist and an optical imaging specialist with over 14 years of experience in techniques such
as multiphoton microscopy, confocal microscopy, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and
multimodal devices. Her extensive publication record underscores her significant contributions
to this specialized field. Dr. Jain is dedicated to training the next generation of clinicians in
noninvasive imaging. Her ultimate goal is to revolutionize the early detection of skin cancers by

reducing morbidity and mortality. Dr. Jain has been an invited speaker at numerous national
and international congresses.

Giovanni

Giovanni Pellacani

Advisor

GIOVANNI PELLACANI is a Professor of Dermatology, Director of the School of Dermatology, Chairman of the Department of Dermatology, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine 2015-2021 term of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy.He graduated in Medicine at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, magna cum laude. Dr. Pellacani’s research interests include dermato-oncology and non-invasive diagnosis, particularly melanoma, pigmented skin lesions, dermoscopy, in vivo Reflectance Confocal Microscopy, and other imaging modalities, including optical coherence tomography. Dr. Pellacani has published over 500 articles present in “Science Citation Index” with an overall 53 H-index.

Gene Rubenstein

Member

GENE RUBINSTEIN, MD is a board certified dermatologist in Los Angeles, California. He completed undergraduate studies at UCLA, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Biology. He graduated from the Boston University School of Medicine with honors. While in Boston, Dr. Rubinstein was a Research Fellow in Lasers in Dermatology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Rubinstein completed his Dermatology residency at U.C. Irvine. He is a member of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, Fellow of American Society of Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Surgery and a Member of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery. Dr. Rubinstein has written numerous articles for medical journals and presents research at national meetings. He trains other physicians on lasers, fillers and other procedures in dermatology. He is currently a Clinical Instructor and teaches dermatology residents at UCLA.

Kishwer Nehal

Member

KISHWER NEHAL, MD is a board certified dermatologist with fellowship training and expertise in cutaneous oncology and Mohs and dermatologic surgery. Dr. Nehal joined Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in 1998 and developed and directs the cutaneous oncology and Mohs and Dermatologic Surgery Program. Dr. Nehal is also the co-director of the Multidisciplinary Skin Cancer Management Program at MSKCC providing comprehensive care for high risk, complex, and advanced nonmelanoma skin cancer patients in a multidisciplinary setting. She has published extensively in the field of cutaneous oncology and Mohs surgery and serves on the National Comprehensive Cancer Network panel on Nonmelanoma skin cancer and the American Joint Committee on Cancer Squamous cell carcinoma expert panel. Her clinical research over the past 15 years on noninvasive confocal imaging in collaboration with the optical imaging team at MSKCC has resulted in significant advances in imaging skin cancers ex vivo and in vivo to guide surgery. Dr. Nehal is also dedicated to teaching students and residents and is the program director of the ACGME Micrographic Surgery and Dermatologic Oncology fellowship, a training program in cutaneous oncology and Mohs and cutaneous reconstructive surgery.

Hammond

Stephen Hammond

Member

STEPHEN HAMMOND, MD is triple board certified in anatomic pathology, clinical pathology and dermatopathology. He is currently the medical director and head of dermatopathology at biopsy diagnostics, an Aurora Diagnostics company. He received his medical degree from the Royal College of Surgeons, Ireland. He completed his residency training in Boston University Medical Center where he served as chief resident in both anatomical and clinical pathology. He completed his fellowship at the renowned Ackerman Academy of Dermatology in New York. He is the recipient of multiple national awards for both academic and leadership qualities. Dr. Hammond has multiple publications and has presented at national and international meetings.

His interests include melanocytic lesions and cutaneous disease in ethnic populations and he is an early adopter of reflectance confocal microscopy use for the non-invasive diagnosis of cutaneous tumors. He is an advocate of public health education and has written articles promoting understanding of pathology services in consumer media.

Lilia Correa-Selm

Vice-President

Dr. Correa-Selm is a U.S. board-certified dermatologist and internist, international
dermatologist, fellowship-trained Mohs micrographic surgeon, and expert confocalist.
She is an Associate Professor at the Dermatology Department of The University of South
Florida and is part of the cutaneous oncology multidisciplinary team at Moffitt Cancer
Center. Prior to being at USF/Moffitt, she was the Director of Cutaneous Surgery at Cleveland
Clinic Indian River Hospital while also teaching as an assistant professor at FSU. Before moving
to Florida, she completed a fellowship in Mohs micrographic surgery in New Jersey after
completing her Dermatology residency at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
Additionally, she also accomplished a confocal microscopy fellowship and a laser/cosmetic
research fellowship.   She is a published author of numerous book chapters in dermatology as
well as articles in important medical journals.

Omar Noor

Member

OMAR NOOR, MD is a board certified dermatologist in New Jersey and New York. He completed his medical education at George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington DC and completed his dermatology residency at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine where he was the chief resident. His interests include skin cancer and medical dermatology with a special interest in Cosmetic Dermatology, including Botox, Fillers, and Lasers. Dr. Omar Noor has received several distinguishing awards from the New York Academy of Medicine in the field of dermatology, is currently a member of the NYC Medical Reserve Corp.

Hamza Bhatti

Member

HAMZA BHATTI, DO is the chief resident dermatologist at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine. Dr. Bhatti graduated from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed Family Medicine residency at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, NY. He then completed a two-year Reflectance Confocal Microscopy Fellowship at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. Dr. Bhatti is currently a resident dermatologist at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine. After graduating from dermatology residency in June 2019, Dr. Bhatti will pursue an ASDS accredited Procedural Dermatology and ACGME accredited Mohs Micrographic Surgery Fellowship at The Skin Institute of South Florida. His research interests and experience include confocal microscopy, teledermatology, and dermatologic surgery.

John Durkin

Member

JOHN DURKIN is a board certified dermatologist and Assistant Professor of Dermatology at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico. He graduated from University of Pittsburg Medical School and completed residency at Drexel University, where he served as chief resident. Dr. Durkin’s areas of interest include digital imaging and diagnostic techniques, such as dermoscopy, optical coherence tomography and reflective confocal microscopy.  He is also interested in pigmented lesions (moles) and melanoma, hereditary cancer syndromes, and noninvasive treatment of skin cancer. In addition, Dr. Durkin also provides aesthetic services such as Botox, peels, fillers, laser treatments and serves as our Director of Undergraduate Medical Education for rotating medical students

Anthony Rossi

Member

ANTHONY M. ROSSI, MD, is an assistant attending physician in the Department of Medicine, Dermatology Service, at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center with a specialty in Mohs Micrographic Surgery and advanced cutaneous oncology. Dr. Rossi earned both his undergraduate degree from New York University and attended Weill Cornell Medical College.  He completed a dermatology residency at St. Luke’s Roosevelt – Beth Israel in New York City, where he served as chief resident, and then completed a procedural dermatology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medical College. He is board-certified in dermatology with a special interest in the research of surgical, laser, and other procedural treatments for cancer patients at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Dhaval Bhanusali

Member

DHAVAL BHANUSALI, MD is a board certified dermatologist and digital health entrepreneur based in Manhattan.  As a member of the prestigious Medical Scholars program at Michigan State University, Dr. Bhanusali was accepted into medical school at the age of seventeen and graduated college in three years. After finishing medical school, Dr. Bhanusali completed his Dermatology residency at Mount Sinai hospital in New York City. During his career, Dr. Bhanusali has been featured on Elite Daily, Buzzfeed, Yahoo, Askmen, the Atlantic, People Magazine, Teen Vogue, Bustle, Self, WebMD, and countless other media outlets. He specializes in medical and cosmetic dermatology and looks to bridge the gap between cutting edge technologies and established paradigms. He has helped run FDA clinical trials and been published widely throughout the most prestigious journals in dermatology.

Attiya Haroon

Member

ATTIYA HAROON, MD, PhD is a current resident dermatologist at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine. Dr. Haroon graduated from Rawalpindi Medical College in Pakistan and completed a PhD in innovative diagnostic medicine from the University of Ryukyus in Japan. Dr. Haroon then completed a one-year fellowship Reflectance Confocal Microscopy Fellowship at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. She has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on in vivo microscopy. Dr. Haroon’s research interests include the application of confocal microscopy in skin cancer diagnosis and management, with a special focus on melanoma.

Dr. Tejasvi

Member

Dr. Tejasvi is an Associate Professor in Dermatology at Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan. He directs the Cutaneous Lymphoma program and Teledermatology service. He is also the Chief of Dermatology service at the Ann Arbor Veteran Affairs. He is the president of the International society for Digital Health in Dermatology, previously known as the International Society for Teledermatology. He also has served as the chair of the Teledermatology committee and the chair of the Teledermatology SIG of American Telemedicine Association. He is the author of more than 90 publications in various National and International peer-reviewed journals including Nature Genetics, Journal of Investigative Dermatology, JAAD, and JAMA Dermatology.

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