By Joan Tupponce

A defining moment. That’s how Virginia Commonwealth University junior Daniel Gharavi describes working in the lab of a medical imaging pioneer.

Through a research internship this past summer, Gharavi, who is double-majoring in biology in the College of Humanities and Sciences and business in the School of Business at VCU, made significant contributions in the lab of Abass Alavi, M.D., known for his work on positron emission tomography, which is commonly used to track cancer. Through his work with the lab, Gharavi, who is in the Honors College at VCU, participated in four publications in the journal PET Clinics and two more studies being readied by health and science publisher Elsevier.

Prior to working in Alavi’s lab at the at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, Gharavi honed his research skills at the National Institutes of Health in the Radiology and Imaging Sciences Department, where he made connections that helped him secure the position at Penn.

“I learned a lot at Penn, and I was able to expand on what I learned at the NIH in many different ways,” he said.

Gharavi’s contributions to the research at both institutions were focused on improving early cancer detection and monitoring treatment responses in patients, based on using PET/CT imaging and novel radiotracers.

However, his work has not been strictly driven by academic curiosity. Having witnessed a family member struggle with early-onset Alzheimer’s, Gharavi also became deeply interested in how PET/CT scans can detect plaques — an early indicator of Alzheimer’s — as well as cancer tumors in the brain.

“I got to see through my own eyes how this disease was affecting the body and the mind over time,” he said, “And I just wanted to do everything I could to make sure that future victims of this disease got the necessary treatment in time.”

A PET/CT scan can show the formation of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain, which are believed to damage nerve cells and contribute to Alzheimer’s.

“Thankfully, I’ve seen firsthand how PET/CT detects tumors early on,” Gharavi said. “But now my goal is to dive deep into PET/CT projects on Alzheimer’s and see what I can do to make a difference.”

PET/CT imaging has been and continues to be “a powerful way to recognize cancer in its early stages and allows for a real difference to be made in a patient’s prognosis,” he said. “However, only recently have we started exploring its potential in the early detection of Alzheimer’s.”

At Penn, Gharavi faced the steep learning curve of interpreting PET/CT data, which requires both technical expertise and a strong understanding of tumor biology.

“Early on, I struggled to distinguish between normal physiological uptake and unusual patterns that could indicate pathology,” he said. “However, through a lot of studying, guidance from my mentor and hands-on experience, I was thankfully able to build the skills and confidence needed to break down imaging results effectively.”

He also embraced his work with professor Mona-Elisabeth Revheim from the Oslo University Hospital in Norway on a research project targeting brain aging.

“Mona helped us interpret complex data, offered valuable advice on how to navigate and advance the project, and gave in-depth explanations about the underlying biology,” he said. “Working with her also gave me the unique opportunity to understand the research process from a European perspective.”

Born in Iran, Gharavi moved to the U.S. when he was 7, and his interest in medicine stems from his parents’ experience in the health care field.

“Becoming a doctor has almost always been my goal,” he said.

During his freshman year at Deep Run High School in Henrico County, he was introduced to biology.

“Biology has always been fun for me. I had to learn a lot about it in high school for my AP Biology class. It encouraged me to keep going on this track,” he said, which including starting a medical club to inspire peers to pursue health careers.

At VCU, Gharavi has expanded his exploration through research internships that turned summers into seasons of growth.

“You learn how to write an article, come up with the sources yourself, process the material yourself, brainstorm and figure out what to tackle first,” he said. “I discovered the article-writing process, thanks to those around me.”

Gharavi also learned about the expectation of perfection, as Alavi’s research-heavy team demands precision in every detail.

“It takes a lot of mental resilience being in a team where the majority of those around you are upperclass medical students, physicians and professors with several years of research experience,” he said.

But he might be among those ranks before long. After he graduates from VCU, Gharavi would like to pursue a medical degree – and an MBA.