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Former U of A Division of Gastroenterology chief passes away

July 2, 2026
David Mogollon, Communications Manager, Department of Medicine

Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, who served on the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson’s faculty for 16 years — seven as GI division chief — died June 19. His memorial service, for family only, was held June 27. He had retired at the start of 2025.

[Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, in 2018 with a prototype of the omni-directional endoscope device he developed in collaboration with Wyant College of Optical Sciences and U of A College of Engineering researchers to improve detection of colorectal cancer. Their work was licensed to Omniscient Imaging LLC, which Dr. Banerjee served as founding CEO.]

Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, in 2018 with a prototype of the omni-directional endoscope device he developed in collaboration with Wyant College of Optical Sciences and U of A College of Engineering researchers to improve detection of colorectal cancer. Their work was licensed to Omniscient Imaging LLC, which Dr. Banerjee served as founding CEO.

Courtesy of Tech Launch Arizona
[Bhaskar Banerjee, MD]

Bhaskar Banerjee, MD

Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, a University of Arizona professor emeritus in medicine, optical sciences and biomedical engineering, died June 19 at the age of 66. Dr. Banerjee, a former Division of Gastroenterology chief, also served as GI Fellowship program director in the Department of Medicine at the U of A College of Medicine – Tucson. 

A family memorial service was held June 27 for Dr. Banerjee at East Lawn Palms Mortuary & Cemetery in Tucson. Born in India in 1959, Dr. Banerjee grew up in London. He is survived by his wife, Mousumi Banerjee, a special needs teacher, and two sons, Shoujit, 31, a physician and chief resident at the UC Irvine School of Medicine who’s about to start his gastroenterology fellowship, and Romit, 23, a structural systems engineer in the space industry.

[Juanita L. Merchant, MD, PhD]

Juanita Merchant,
MD, PhD

“The GI Division was saddened to learn of his passing,” said Juanita Merchant, MD, PhD, a U of A Regents Professor, current GI division chief and the U of A Cancer Center’s basic sciences associate director. “He was an innovative researcher and dedicated teacher and clinician who collaborated with the College of Optical Sciences to develop novel endoscopic tools.”

Steve Goldschmid, MD, also a professor emeritus and former College of Medicine – Tucson dean who served as interim GI division chief when Dr. Banerjee stepped down in 2015 until Dr. Merchant took the position in 2018, noted Dr. Banerjee’s considerable legacy. 

[Steve Goldschmid, MD]

Steve Goldschmid,
MD

“Dr. Banerjee was the most adored division member,” Dr. Goldschmid said. “He bridged clinical practice with technology, dedicating his career to the advancement of our specialty and the education of future gastroenterologists.”

A physician-scientist focused on improving earlier detection of GI cancers, Dr. Banerjee earned his medical degree from England’s University of London. Afterward, he completed his internal medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship training at the University of Connecticut. He took on the U of A’s GI division chief position in 2008, arriving from Washington University in St. Louis, where he had been on faculty since 1999.

In Tucson, Dr. Banerjee, in addition to his clinical and education duties, edited the textbook “Nutritional Management of Digestive Disorders,” first published in 2010. He was a member of the U of A Cancer Center and the Cancer Biology Graduate Interdisciplinary Program. He also formed alliances with faculty in optical sciences and the U of A College of Engineering’s Department of Biomedical Engineering. His idea was to develop an endoscope that provides a 360-degree view to more easily identify potential malignancies during colonoscopy procedures.

In 2013, this work led to his being picked to serve on a National Photonics Initiative subcommittee on health and medicine that advised the White House and Congress on photonics research. Separately, he was part of the 2015 team who successfully helped Banner – University Medical Center Tucson become designated as a National Pancreas Foundation Center of Excellence treatment referral site.

[Explaining how what would come to be called the endoseer endoscope would function, Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, notes the device would enable gastroenterologists to see sideways and backwards as well as forward during colonoscopies to detect polyps and lesions that could be pre-cancerous or cancerous better and earlier.]

Explaining how his endoscope would function, Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, noted in 2016 it would let gastroenterologists see in any direction during colonoscopies to better detect polyps and lesions that could be cancerous.

David Mogollon, Dept. of Medicine

In 2018, Dr. Banerjee and colleagues licensed their work from the U of A through its commercialization arm Tech Launch Arizona and launched Omniscient Imaging, LLC, with him as CEO, to further develop his 360-degree endoscope to be used for cancer screenings. The omni-directional device, the concept for which had won several National Cancer Institute grants, also had industrial uses such as pipeline monitoring. It even attracted Department of Defense interest as a tool to survey for potential explosive devices in tight quarters. In vivo results were presented at Digestive Diseases Week 2022, with a fully functional prototype completed by 2023. The company holds six U.S. related patents and European patents validated in 25 countries.

[Optical sciences professor Rongguang “Ron” Liang, PhD and Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, discuss next steps in development of their innovative endoscope in 2016. ]

Optical sciences professor Rongguang “Ron” Liang, PhD and Bhaskar Banerjee, MD, discuss next steps in development of their innovative endoscope in 2016.

David Mogollon, Dept. of Medicine

Rongguang Liang, PhD, a professor and the Thomas R. Brown Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences at the Wyant College of Optical Sciences, was a collaborator of Dr. Banerjee both at the U of A and with Omniscient.

“Dr. Banerjee’s passing is a great loss to the U of A community and the broader medical technology community,” Dr. Liang said. “I was very impressed by his dedication to developing new technologies for clinical applications. During the time we worked together and co-founded Omniscient Imaging, I appreciated his vision for translating research into tools that could ultimately benefit patients and clinicians.”

Dr. Liang left Omniscient a couple of years after its founding to build his own startup, LR InnovOptics Inc., with Tech Launch Arizona’s assistance.

“I'll remember Dr. Banerjee as a passionate innovator who cared deeply about advancing clinical technology. His contributions and commitment will be missed,” he added.

Dr. Banerjee retired on Jan. 1, 2025, but maintained a semi-active role with the division. His most recently published paper, coauthored with fellow GI faculty members, Oleh Haluszka, MD, and Rolando Leal, MD, and a recent GI fellowship graduate John Azizian, MD, explores the role of artificial intelligence in detection, tracking and surveillance of GI tract polyps. It appeared in the June issue of the journal Cureus.

ALSO SEE:
“DOM gets three of five new Professors Emeriti at College of Medicine – Tucson” | Posted Feb. 17, 2025 
“Former Gastroenterology Chief, Medicine Chair and College of Medicine Dean, Dr. Steve Goldschmid Retires” | Posted Dec. 16, 2018 
“Tech Launch Arizona Assists GI Doc in Licensing Dual-View Endoscope Developed at UA” | Posted April 20, 2018 
“Startup Licenses University of Arizona Dual-View Probe for Medical Endoscopy” | Posted April 19, 2018
“BizTucson, Tucson Lifestyle Pay Tribute to UA Health Sciences, DOM Docs” | Posted Dec. 13, 2017 
“Clearing the Way for Fewer, More Effective Colonoscopies – AZPM Reports on Dual-View Endoscope Developed by UA Gastroenterologist”  | Posted April 15, 2017 
“UA Team Working to Improve Lifesaving Colonoscopy” | Posted April 14, 2017
“Nine Faculty Physicians Receive Promotions in Department of Medicine” | Posted Aug. 19, 2016 
“UA Medical Team Wins Accreditation for Banner – UMC Tucson as Treatment Referral Center by National Pancreas Foundation” | Posted Sept. 8, 2015

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