Dr. Roxanne Bavarian obtained her dental degree at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry. While in dental school, she most enjoyed working in the oral medicine clinic and learning about the diagnosis of rare oral diseases. She then pursued a certificate in oral medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, working in the evaluation and management of oral diseases, both in the general population as well as patients undergoing treatment of head and neck cancer and hematologic malignancies. As part of her oral medicine training, she also obtained her DMSc degree at HSDM through the Sinclair lab at Harvard Medical School, studying animal models of radiation-associated toxicities such as acute radiation syndrome and oral mucositis, with the goal of identifying a novel therapeutic with radioprotective properties. She was awarded an NIH R21 grant as well as a grant from the American Academy of Oral Medicine for this project.

After completing her oral medicine residency, she found herself wanting to learn more about the management of chronic pain conditions and pursued additional training in orofacial pain at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). While at MGH, she participated in the Mass General Brigham United Against Racism project to expand the reach of oral medicine and orofacial pain to community health centers in Boston. Her research interests include topics in access to care as well as the psychological and social factors that impact the perception of pain.

Dr. Bavarian is a diplomate of the American Board of Oral Medicine as well as a diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine. She is excited to continue her career at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine sharing her experience and knowledge in hospital-based residencies with both the pre- and post-doctoral dental students.