Massachusetts General Hospital

Biography

Pathologist
Director of Gynecological and Urological Pathology
Massachusetts General Hospital

Robert E. Scully Professor of Pathology
Harvard Medical School

Email: rhyoung@partners.org

Dr. Young has written extensively on the morphologic features of ovarian and testicular cancer, several of the studies representing the largest reported experience with certain unusual neoplasms. He has also written papers on benign lesions that mimic cancer. Dr. Young has co-authored an Atlas of Gynecological Pathology. He is also a co-author with Dr. Robert Scully of the 3rd Series Fascicle on Tumors of the ovary, and with others of two other works in the same series, on tumors of the testis, and tumors of the prostate gland and related structures. He is director of annual courses on surgical pathology, gynecological pathology and urologic pathology.

Research

Dr. Young's research inlcudes clinicopathological studies in the field of gynecological and urological pathology. In gynecologic pathology a particular interest has been in ovarian tumors in the categories of the sex cord-stromal tumors and metastatic neoplasms. Dr. Young has written many papers with his senior colleague, Dr. Robert E. Scully, including large numbers on sex cord tumors which have helped define their morphologic spectrum and clinical behavior.

In recent years, Dr. Young and Dr. Scully have highlighted the propensity for mucinous tumors metastatic to the ovary to simulate primary mucinous cancers of the ovary, work that has been confirmed by other observers. Studies continue on the exploration of various aspects of the morphology of primary and metastatic ovarian neoplasms. In the area of uterine pathology, Dr. Young's special interests at this time include the morphology of unusual variants of endometrial cancer. Several studies have just been completed or are in progress in that field. Dr. Young, Dr. Scully and other colleagues have written extensively on both benign and malignant glandular lesions of the cervix and have defined several new entities in this area of pathology, entities whose recognition has very important clinical consequences with regard to therapy.

In urologic pathology, Dr. Young's major interests are in bladder and testicular tumor pathology. Dr. Young and fellow collaborators have highlighted in recent years some deceptively benign patterns of bladder cancer that can cause them to be misinterpreted as benign lesions. In companion with that area of investigation he has explored the morphology of the converse problem, namely the misinterpretation of various benign lesions as cancer, a recent example being the first description of pseudocarcinomatous proliferations in the bladder related to radiation therapy.

PublicationsBibliography of Robert H. Young via PubMed

Bicentennial Corner

Many ‘keen minds’ have worked toward a better understanding of disease to enable improved diagnosis and treatment.