Dr. Zembowicz received his M.D. and Ph.D. (Pharmacology) degrees from Copernicus Academy of Medicine/Jagiellonian University Medical College In Cracow, Poland. His basic research involved inflammation and vascular biology and included training in the laboratory of Sir John R. Vane, FRS, a Nobel Prize Laureate, at the William Harvey Research Institute in London, UK and research fellowships at the Department of Hematology at the UT Houston with Dr. Kenneth K. Wu, M.D, at Harvard with Dr Michael Gimbrone, M.D. This experience is the basis of his interest in inflammatory dermatopathology, especially vasculitis, vasculopathies and drug eruptions.

Dr. Zembowicz trained in Anatomic Pathology at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. At the Brigham, he studied dermatopathology with Dr. Raymond Barnhill and Dr. Phillip McKee. After completing the Harvard Dermatopathology Fellowship in 1999, he joined Dr. Martin C. Mihm as his associate in Dr. Mihm’s Consultation Practice and, in 2000, the Department of Pathology at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Between 2000 and 2007 he served as an Attending Physician on the Dermatopathology, Head and neck pathology (with Drs. Ben Z. Pilch, M.D. and William Faquin, M.D.) and Ophthalmic pathology (with Drs. Thaddeus Dryja, M.D. and Frederic Jacobiec, M.D.) services at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston.

In 2007 Dr. Zembowicz was recruited to Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA, a suburb on Boston, where he serves as a Senior Staff in Dermatopathology. He is a dermatopathology consultant to Atrius Health/Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, a multispecialty group practice in Boston area. He is also a member of the staff at several premiere New England Institutions including Harvard University-affiliated teaching hospitals Beth Israel Medical Center in Boston, MA and Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA as well as Roger Williams Hospital in Providence, RI.

Dr. Zembowicz learned the second-opinion consultation trade from Dr. Mihm helping him in his consult practice for 7 years and at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary where his yearly referrals reached 1500 cases a year. To address the need for pathology consultations and dermatopathology practice support, in 2007, he launched an independent practice, Dermatopathology Consultations LLC, which has since served more than 200 pathology organizations and now receives 5000 to 6000 cases a year. In addition to increasing expertise stemming from unique second opinion consultation material, the key to this success was the development of a proprietary web-based software which captures the entire process of communication between a referring pathologist and a consultant and his commitment to continued medical education for himself and others expressed by founding Dermpedia.org, a dermatopathology education platform and CME provider.

In 2003, Dr. Zembowicz was named a Director of the Harvard Dermatopathology Update CME Course. In 2009, the Dermpedia website was launched and the first independent Dermpedia CME Course was held. Now, the Dermpedia CME Courses and Dermpedia educational videos attract hundreds of experienced pathologists a year. He has lectured on all continents. Dr. Zembowicz is involved in WHO Classification of Skin Tumors (4th and 5th Edition) and serves as the dermatopathology consultant to the National Cancer Institute

Dr. Zembowicz’s research interests and contributions include papers on endothelial biology and inflammation, melanocytic tumors, adnexal tumors and inflammation. .

He lives in Belmont, MA, with his wife, Margaret, a pediatric anesthesiologist at Children's Hospital (Boston) and their cat, Lady Cannoli. They have 2 sons, Filip, a Harvard College graduate, Google alumnus and entrepreneur currently running his own company and Thomas, a Yale College graduate who is employed with a NYC start up.

Fun facts about Dr. Zembowicz include that he took his first steps on international stage in high school when he represented Poland at the International Chemistry in Stockholm, Sweden, where he received a silver medal. In his spare time he likes to hike, ski and race dinghy’s (Sunfish and Laser).

Professional Degrees:

• M.D. Copernicus Academy of Medicine, Cracow, Poland

• Ph.D. Copernicus Academy of Medicine, Cracow Poland

Board Certifications:

• Anatomic Pathology

• Dermatopathology

Medical Licenses:

• Massachusetts

• California

• Rhode Island

Selected bibliography:

• Zembowicz A, Navarro P, Walters S, Lyle SR, Moschella SL, Miller D. Subcutaneous Thrombotic Vasculopathy Syndrome: An Ominous Condition Reminiscent of Calciphylaxis: Calciphylaxis Sine Calcifications? Am J Dermatopathol 2011 July 8;33(8):796-802.

• Zembowicz A, Ahmad A, Lyle SR. A comprehensive analysis of a web-based dermatopathology second opinion consultation practice. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2011 March;135(3):379-83.

• Zembowicz A, Granter SR, McKee PH, Mihm MC. Amelanotic cellular blue nevus: a hypopigmented variant of the cellular blue nevus: clinicopathologic analysis of 20 cases. Am J Surg Pathol 2002 November;26(11):1493-500.

• Zembowicz A, Phadke PA. Blue nevi and variants: an update. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2011 March;135(3):327-36.

• Zembowicz A, Mihm MC. Dermal dendritic melanocytic proliferations: an update. [Review] [94 refs]. Histopathology 2004 November;45(5):433-51.

• Zembowicz A, Garcia CF, Tannous ZS, Mihm MC, Koerner F, Pilch BZ. Endocrine mucin-producing sweat gland carcinoma: twelve new cases suggest that it is a precursor of some invasive mucinous carcinomas. Am J Surg Pathol 2005 October;29(10):1330-9.

• Zembowicz A, Mastalerz L, Setkowicz M, Radziszewski W, Szczeklik A. Histological spectrum of cutaneous reactions to aspirin in chronic idiopathic urticaria. J Cutan Pathol 2004 April;31(4):323-9.

• Zembowicz A, Knoepp SM, Bei T et al. Loss of expression of protein kinase a regulatory subunit 1alpha in pigmented epithelioid melanocytoma but not in melanoma or other melanocytic lesions. Am J Surg Pathol 2007 November;31(11):1764-75.

• Zembowicz A, Mandal RV, Choopong P. Melanocytic lesions of the conjunctiva. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2010 December;134(12):1785-92.

• Zembowicz A, McCusker M, Chiarelli C et al. Morphological analysis of nevoid melanoma: a study of 20 cases with a review of the literature. [Review] [26 refs]. Am J Dermatopathol 2001 June;23(3):167-75.

• Zembowicz A, Scolyer RA. Nevus/Melanocytoma/Melanoma: an emerging paradigm for classification of melanocytic neoplasms? Arch Pathol Lab Med 2011 March;135(3):300-6.

• Zembowicz A, Carney JA, Mihm MC. Pigmented epithelioid melanocytoma: a low-grade melanocytic tumor with metastatic potential indistinguishable from animal-type melanoma and epithelioid blue nevus.[see comment][erratum appears in Am J Surg Pathol. 2004 May;28(5):following table of contents]. Am J Surg Pathol 2004 January;28(1):31-40.

• Wilbur DC, Madi K, Colvin RB et al. Whole-slide imaging digital pathology as a platform for teleconsultation: a pilot study using paired subspecialist correlations. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2009 December;133(12):1949-53.

• Al-Zaid T, Vanderweil S, Zembowicz A, Lyle S. Sebaceous gland loss and inflammation in scarring alopecia: a potential role in pathogenesis. J Am Acad Dermatol 2011 September;65(3):597-603.

• Butterton JR, Collier DS, Romero JM, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 14-2007. A 59-year-old man with fever and pain and swelling of both eyes and the right ear.[see comment]. N Engl J Med 2007 May 10;356(19):1980-8.

• Campen R, Zembowicz A, Liu V, Wrone D. Linear ectodermal cutaneous hamartoma. Int J Dermatol 2003 May;42(5):376-9.

• Caplan A, Zembowicz A. Manus (talon) noir. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2006.

• Caplan AP, Zembowicz A. Porocarcinoma (squamous variant) In Cases in Dermatopathology: Adnexal Neoplasms. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2005.

• Caro I, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Weekly clinicopathological exercises. Case 5-2003 - a 16-year-old girl with a rash and chest pain.[see comment]. N Engl J Med 2003 February 13;348(7):630-7.

• Chaudhry IH, Zembowicz A. Adnexal clear cell carcinoma with comedonecrosis: clinicopathologic analysis of 12 cases. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2007 November;131(11):1655-64.

• Choopong P, Zembowicz A. Conjunctival compound nevus In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2006.

• Choopong P, Zembowicz A. Conjunctival malignant melanoma In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2006.

• Chung VQ, Moschella SL, Zembowicz A, Liu V. Clinical and pathologic findings of paraneoplastic dermatoses. [Review] [106 refs]. J Am Acad Dermatol 2006 May;54(5):745-62.

• Dahyia M, Zembowicz A. Pigmented spindle cell nevus In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane.; 2006.

• Davis T, Zembowicz A. Histological evolution of lentiginous melanoma: a report of five new cases. J Cutan Pathol 2007 April;34(4):296-300.

• Davis TL, Zembowicz A. Cholesterol embolism. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Davis TL, Mandal RV, Bevona C et al. Collagenous vasculopathy: a report of three cases. J Cutan Pathol 2008 October;35(10):967-70.

• Dinulos JG, Zembowicz A, Dinulos JGH, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 32-2008. A 10-year-old girl with recurrent oral lesions and cutaneous bullae. N Engl J Med 2008 October 16;359(16):1718-24.

• Gerami P, Zembowicz A. Update on fluorescence in situ hybridization in melanoma: state of the art. Arch Pathol Lab Med 2011 July;135(7):830-7.

• Gleason BC, Hirsch MS, Nucci MR et al. Atypical genital nevi. A clinicopathologic analysis of 56 cases. Am J Surg Pathol 2008 January;32(1):51-7.

• Izikson L, Bhan A, Zembowicz A. Androgen receptor expression helps to differentiate basal cell carcinoma from benign trichoblastic tumors. Am J Dermatopathol 2005 April;27(2):91-5.

• Izikson L, Vanderpool J, Brodsky G, Mihm MC, Jr., Zembowicz A. Combined basal cell carcinoma and Langerhans cell histiocytosis of the scrotum in a patient with occupational exposure to coal tar and dust. Int J Dermatol 2004 September;43(9):678-80.

• Izikson L, Sober AJ, Mihm MC, Jr., Zembowicz A. Prevalence of melanoma clinically resembling seborrheic keratosis: analysis of 9204 cases. Arch Dermatol 2002 December;138(12):1562-6.

• Jensen SL, McCuaig C, Zembowicz A et al. Bullous lesions in acrodermatitis enteropathica delaying diagnosis of zinc deficiency: a report of two cases and review of the literature. J Cutan Pathol 2008 October;35 Suppl 1:1-13.

• Klein W, Zembowicz A. Iron hyperpigmentation. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2006.

• Magro CM, Zippin JH, Zembowicz A, Yang S. Soluble adenylyl cyclase antibody in the assessment of lentigo maligna margins. Modern Pathology . 2012.
  Ref Type: Abstract

• Mandal R, Murali R, Lundquist K et al. Pigmented epithelioid melanocytoma: favorable outcome after 5 year follow-up . Am J Surg Pathol 2009;33(12):1778-82.

• Mandal RV, Zembowicz A. Conjunctival malignant melanoma In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Mandal RV, Zembowicz A. Sebaceous carcinoma masquerading as squamous papilloma of the eyelid. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Mandal RV, McAllister JC, Zembowicz A. Stevens-Johnson syndrome. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• McAllister JC, Lim LJ, Zembowicz A. Necrobiotic xanthogranuloma. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Mehta S, Thiagalingam S, Zembowicz A, Hatton MP. Endocrine mucin-producing sweat gland carcinoma of the eyelid. Ophthal Plast Reconstr Surg 2008 March;24(2):164-5.

• Murali MR, Mackool BT, Muse VV, Zembowicz A, Ferry JA. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 25-2007. A 60-year-old man with fever, odynophagia, weight loss, and rash. N Engl J Med 2007 August 16;357(7):692-701.

• Nazarian RM, Van Cott EM, Zembowicz A et al. Warfarin-induced skin necrosis. [Review] [36 refs]. J Am Acad Dermatol 2009 August;61(2):325-32.

• Phadke PA, Zembowicz A. Blue nevi and related tumors. Clin Lab Med 2011 June;31(2):345-58.

• Piris A, Zembowicz A, Mihm CM. Nevus of Ito. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2011.

• Piris A, Zembowicz A, Mihm CM. Tricholemmoma (desmoplastic). In Cases in Dermatopathology: Adnexal Neoplasms. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane, AU.; 2005.

• Quinn TR, Duncan LM, Zembowicz A, Faquin WC. Cutaneous metastases of follicular thyroid carcinoma: a report of four cases and a review of the literature. Am J Dermatopathol 2005 August;27(4):306-12.

• Rahemtullah A, Longtine JA, Harris NL et al. CD20+ T-cell lymphoma: clinicopathologic analysis of 9 cases and a review of the literature. Am J Surg Pathol 2008 November;32(11):1593-607.

• Rahemtullah A, Szyfelbein K, Zembowicz A. Glomus coccygeum: report of a case and review of the literature. Am J Dermatopathol 2005 December;27(6):497-9.

• Rao RA, Zembowicz A. Temporal arteritis. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Rodriguez N, Zembowicz A, Tannous Z. Prepubertal nevus sebaceous (organoid nevus) In Cases in Dermatopathology: Adnexal Neoplasms. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane.; 2005.

• Somoano B, Zembowicz A. Granuloma faciale-like hypersensitivity reaction to dermatophyte. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Critical Diagnoses in Dematopathology. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2007.

• Sugiura M, Zembowicz A. Amelanotic cellular blue nevus. In Cases in Dermatopathology: Common problems in diagnosis of pigmented lesions. Knowledge Books and Software, Brisbane; 2006.

• Sugiura M, Colby KA, Mihm MC, Jr., Zembowicz A. Low-risk and high-risk histologic features in conjunctival primary acquired melanosis with atypia: Clinicopathologic analysis of 29 cases. Am J Surg Pathol 2007 February;31(2):185-92.

• Szyfelbein K, Kozakewicz HP, Syed NA, Zembowicz A. Phakomatous choristoma of the eyelid: a report of a case. J Cutan Pathol 2004 August;31(7):506-8.

• Tan JK, Lipworth AD, Nelson AA, Zembowicz A, Moschella SL. Part III: cutaneous hypersensitivity during selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor therapy resulting in acquired cutis laxa. J Drugs Dermatol 2011 February;10(2):215-6.

• Tannous ZS, Avram MM, Zembowicz A et al. Treatment of synchronous mucinous carcinoma and endocrine mucin-producing sweat gland carcinoma with Moh's micrographic surgery. Dermatol Surg 2005;31.

• Thiagalingam S, Johnson MM, Colby KA, Zembowicz A. Juvenile conjunctival nevus: clinicopathologic analysis of 33 cases. Am J Surg Pathol 2008 March;32(3):399-406.

• Thompson JF, Hodi FS, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 2-2007. A 49-year-old woman with a pigmented lesion on the arm. N Engl J Med 2007 January 18;356(3):285-92.

• Tsao H, Sober AJ, Niendorf KB, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Weekly clinicopathological exercises. Case 7-2004. A 48-year-old woman with multiple pigmented lesions and a personal and family history of melanoma.[see comment]. N Engl J Med 2004 February 26;350(9):924-32.

• Tucker JD, Shah S, Jarell AD et al. Lues maligna in early HIV infection case report and review of the literature. [Review] [12 refs]. Sexually Transmitted Diseases 2009 August;36(8):512-4.

• Whelan JP, Zembowicz A. Case records of the Massachusetts General Hospital. Case 19-2006. A 22-month-old boy with the rapid growth of subcutaneous nodules. N Engl J Med 2006 June 22;354(25):2697-704.