Meet Our Team

Jenna received a BS in public health from CSU Dominguez Hills & an MPH from UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. She was study coordinator in the Division of Infectious Diseases at LA Biomedical Research Institute & also worked at the Center of Culture, Trauma and Mental Health Disparities under Dr. Gail Wyatt on HIV/HIV prevention projects. Jenna is now the project coordinator for the colorectal polyp surveillance study to improve CRC surveillance at UCLA Health.

Jayraan joins the Vatche & Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases from the trauma service at Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego, where she was a research epidemiologist with the trauma research team. Her areas of interest included traumatic DVT/PE, DVT prophylaxis, and related injury patterns, multi-center research, and statewide patterns of traumatic injury and surgical intervention. She collaborated closely with general surgery residents to complete research projects.

Dr. Burns Loeb is a clinical investigator at the Greater Los Angeles VA and adjunct associate professor in UCLA’s Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences. She specializes in health services research, health disparities, and implementation science. Since joining the May Lab in 2023, she has conducted qualitative interviews and analyses for several studies, including a VA-funded colonoscopy surveillance project.

Zichen is a PhD student in biostatistics at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Her research interests are broadly in clinical trial methodology. In the May Lab, she manages the data analyses for two NIH R01 studies for colorectal cancer prevention. Before joining UCLA, Zichen received her MS in biostatistics from the University of Washington and her BA in chemistry from Pomona College. She also worked as a data analyst at the Institution for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Seattle, WA.

Lauren “Lorena” supports an NIH R01 study to increase follow-up colonoscopy after abnormal stool-based colorectal cancer screening results. She earned a BA at Cal Poly Pomona (‘22) and MA from CSULA (‘24) in psychology. Her research spans psychoneuroimmunology, trauma and cardiovascular health, and Alzheimer’s within Latinx. She credits her immigrant grandparents (Jose, Carmen, Bertha) as the foundation of her passion for health equity research, a passion sustained within the May Lab.

Dr. Qureshi earned his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree from Ziauddin University in Karachi, Pakistan, and recently completed his internal medicine residency at the Adventist Health/Tulare Internal Medicine Residency Program in Central California. His professional interests include colorectal cancer prevention, endoscopy quality metrics, and the expanding role of artificial intelligence in gastroenterology to enhance patient-centered care. 

Vanessa earned a BA in psychology and history from UCLA and an MS in counseling psychology from Northeastern University. Her research experience includes orthopedic surgery, substance use disorder, pediatric otolaryngology, alcohol-associated liver disease, and health services. She joined the May Lab as research coordinator for “FORTE,” an NCI-sponsored clinical trial evaluating the safest and most effective surveillance intervals for people with one or two small benign polyps.

Dr. Thomson graduated from the University of Georgia Honors Program as a dual graduate-undergraduate student with a degree in economics from the Terry College of Business and a certificate in global health and master’s degree in health policy and management. She earned her MD at Mercer University and completed IM residency training at Memorial Health University Medical Center. Her areas of interest include expanding colorectal cancer prevention, patient engagement and quality improvement.

Jessica earned a bachelor of science degree in public Health at the University of Washington, and continued her education at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health where she earned a Master of Public Health degree. As part of UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity, she manages multiple research projects focused on increasing colorectal cancer screening and eliminating health disparities in Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Dr. Zhang received a BS in public administration and public policy and a Master of Public Health from Oakland University and a PhD in health behavior research from the University of Southern California. In the May Lab, she co-leads a study aimed at fast-tracking the diagnostic pathway for young women with alarm symptoms of colorectal cancer using an EHR-based algorithm.

Dr. Smith graduated from Harvard College with a degree in human evolutionary biology and a citation in Spanish language. He completed medical school at Brown University, residency training at UCLA in 2022, and then a year as chief resident. He then served as the Melvin & Bren Simon GI Quality Improvement Program Scholar under the mentorship of Dr. May. He is currently a clinical GI fellow at UCLA and will complete fellowship training in 2027.

Dr. Young earned her bachelor's degree in neuroscience and her medical degree from Brown University. She then completed her residency in internal medicine at New York University, where she also served as chief resident. She is currently a clinical gastroenterology fellow at UCLA and will complete her training in 2027. Her research interests are in healthcare disparities and outcomes in gastrointestinal cancers, with a particular focus on gastric cancer.

Dr. Arif earned a BS in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine and his medical degree from the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine. He is passionate about understanding the role of health disparities and geographic deprivation in shaping colorectal cancer screening and outcomes. He aspires to pursue a career in academic gastroenterology, where he hopes to combine clinical excellence with impactful research to advance health equity.

Dr. Michael earned her BS in biochemistry with a minor in global health from UCLA and her medical degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA as part of the PRIME-LA program. During medical school, she also earned an MPH in health policy and management from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Her research interests are in advancing health equity, with a particular interest in improving colorectal cancer screening and reducing GI disparities in under-resourced communities.

Dr. Zhao earned a BS in chemistry from New York University and his medical degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Prior to medical school, he was a study coordinator at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. His research interests include understanding healthcare disparities and investigating colorectal cancer screening at Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Melanie earned a BA in community health from Tufts University. She is currently a medical student at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a Master of Public Policy candidate at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs through the PRIME-LA Program. She is passionate about reducing GI cancer disparities in low-income communities. In the May Lab, she helps evaluate interventions to increase colonoscopy follow-up after abnormal stool-based testing in federally qualified health centers.