SUMMARY
Dennis H. Murphree Jr., Ph.D., is a quantitative scientist whose work focuses on the development, evaluation and translation of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and statistical methods for clinical medicine. His research spans predictive modeling, computer vision, digital pathology, multimodal AI and clinical informatics, with particular emphasis on dermatology, dermatopathology and cardiovascular medicine.
Dr. Murphree is the scientific director of Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence in the Department of Dermatology at Mayo Clinic. He also holds consultant appointments in the Department of Dermatology and the Department of Artificial Intelligence and Informatics and is an assistant professor of biostatistics at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. He is also an adjunct professor in the Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Program at the University of Minnesota.
Before joining Mayo Clinic, Dr. Murphree spent six years in quantitative finance as a quantitative researcher, systematic trader and portfolio manager, developing and deploying predictive models in global futures markets. That experience continues to inform his emphasis on rigorous validation, real-world performance and the practical deployment of predictive models in healthcare. A major theme of Dr. Murphree's work is moving AI beyond methodological development into practical clinical use. He works closely with clinicians, pathologists, data scientists, engineers and external partners to identify clinically important problems, develop and validate quantitative approaches, and translate promising technologies toward implementation and commercialization.
His research has contributed to AI applications across a broad range of clinical areas, including skin cancer, dermatopathology, cardiovascular disease, critical care, vascular disease and clinical risk prediction. His work also has contributed to multiple inventions and licensed technologies involving AI-enabled diagnostics, medical imaging and clinical decision support.
Focus areas
- Artificial intelligence in dermatology and dermatopathology. Dr. Murphree develops and evaluates AI methods for dermatologic imaging and digital pathology, including computer vision, whole-slide image analysis, foundation models, generative AI and multimodal approaches. His work includes applications in melanoma, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and dermatopathology workflow and diagnostic support.
- Multimodal AI and clinical prediction. Dr. Murphree is particularly interested in combining information from multiple sources — including medical images, digital pathology, electronic health records, physiologic signals and molecular data — to improve diagnosis, risk stratification and prediction of clinically meaningful outcomes.
- AI in cardiovascular and vascular medicine. Dr. Murphree has collaborated extensively on the development and evaluation of AI-enabled approaches using electrocardiograms, vascular measurements and clinical data. This work has included AI-enhanced screening for cardiac amyloidosis, aortic stenosis and peripheral vascular disease, as well as risk prediction in patients with cardiovascular conditions who are critically ill.
- Translation of AI into clinical practice. A central focus of Dr. Murphree's work is bridging the gap between promising research models and technologies that can ultimately improve clinical care. His work encompasses model validation, implementation, workflow integration, intellectual property and commercialization. Several technologies to which he has contributed have been licensed for further development.
- Collaborative quantitative science and mentorship. Dr. Murphree works as a collaborative scientist across clinical disciplines, contributing expertise in study design, statistical modeling, machine learning, validation and interpretation. He also mentors medical students, graduate students, research fellows and other trainees interested in applying quantitative and AI methods to biomedical research.
Significance to patient care
Dr. Murphree's work focuses on developing AI and quantitative tools that support, rather than replace, the expertise of healthcare professionals. These tools may help detect disease earlier, improve risk assessment, reduce unnecessary procedures, identify patients who may benefit from additional treatment and make complex medical information more useful in patient care.
More broadly, his work seeks to help build the scientific, technical and organizational foundations needed to incorporate advances in AI safely, responsibly and effectively into clinical practice.
Professional highlights
- Member, Scientific Evaluation Committee, LEO Foundation, 2025-present.
- Mayo Clinic:
- Scientific director, Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence, Department of Dermatology, 2021-present.
- Robert S. Totz, M.D., Career Development Award in Dermatology, 2018.
- Early Career Reviewer, National Institutes of Health, 2019-2020.
- Finalist, Best Paper Award, International Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, 2020.
- J.W. Gibbs Fellow, Department of Physics, Yale University, 2002.
- Fulbright Fellow, U.S. Department of State, 2001.