We Are Michigan Surgery

Meet some of our surgeons—and your potential collaborators and mentors—and find out what makes them tick.

Here at Michigan Medicine Department of Surgery as part of the Michigan Promise, our goal is to create an environment where every individual thrives. Our passion drives everything we do, and we nurture that passion in others. Collaboration excites us, and our unique perspectives and diverse backgrounds make our work stronger.

We’re opening up our walls virtually, to show you not just what makes us, but who makes us—and what drives us as Michigan surgeons. We are surgeons, researchers, and educators. Get to know us. #WeAreUmichSurgery

Dr. Matthew Corriere in the operating room

"We constantly encounter challenges and unanswered questions through our patients. If we pay attention and think critically, we can transform these barriers into knowledge and innovations that advance the field. This cycle energizes me and never seems to run dry."
Matthew Corriere, MD | Vascular Surgeon

"At Michigan, we value innovation in surgery. Creating opportunities that support surgical innovation and entrepreneurship are essential for accelerating our ideas and technologies that advance the care of our patients while building a diverse culture of forward-thinking surgical innovators."
Mark Cohen, MD, FACS | Endocrine Surgeon

"My purpose is to serve and advance teams that innovate compassionate health care and to foster a creative learning environment in which all are valued and excel. The privilege to lead knowledge acceleration, skill acquisition, and ensure academic success of our early learners, trainees, and faculty is the cornerstone of my academic passion."
Erika Newman, MD | Pediatric Surgeon

Dr. Paul Cederna examining a patient's prosthetic arm

"We have an amazing opportunity to advance the field of medicine through innovation and discovery. Let’s seize this opportunity, make the most of it, and change the world!"
Paul Cederna, MD | Plastic Surgeon

"At Michigan, we are constantly challenging the status quo. We challenge our colleagues and trainees to think outside the box in order to develop the next great advancement in patient care, research, innovation and education."
Kiran Lagisetty, MD | Thoracic Surgeon

Dr. Michael Englesbe talking to someone about an image on a computer

"We should always strive to do better. When we see senseless things happening in our systems of care, we should take note, gather data, and fix the problem."
Michael Englesbe, MD, FACS | Transplant Surgeon

"I am a cancer surgeon and also an educator, mentor, friend, wife, and mother. Giving myself space to be human allows me to see the whole person in my patients and to deliver better care."
Justine Moe, MD, DDS | Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon

"We have our greatest impact through teaching the next generation of surgeons. It is they who will care for future patients, discover the next cure, reshape health systems, and ultimately teach a new generation of surgeons to take their place."
Brian George, MD, MAEd, FACS | Critical Care Surgeon

Dr. Clifford Cho and student looking at an image on a computer

"The most amazing lesson in oncology by far: when suddenly asked to confront a life-threatening cancer diagnosis or to contemplate a potentially risky treatment, people are much, much stronger than you ever thought possible."
Clifford Cho, MD, FACS | Hepatopancreaticobiliary Surgeon

"I try to approach each patient with integrity, skill, and compassion knowing that it is an incredible privilege to be a surgeon and that every patient is unique and valued."
Grace Kim, MD, FACS | Minimally Invasive Surgeon

"Michigan affords us the ideal environment to maintain laser focus on the core principles of academic medicine while exploring new frontiers in research, patient care, education, and health care delivery. I am fortunate to learn from and grow amongst the leaders and best!”
Amir Ghaferi, MD, MS | Minimally Invasive Surgeon

Dr. Ronald Hirschl and team member in the operating room

"In caring for children, we have the opportunity to strive for excellence in not just saving lives, but in saving lifetimes."
Ronald Hirschl, MD | Pediatric Surgeon

"Teaching others the art and practice of medicine allows you to help a nearly infinite number of people when the physicians you’ve taught go on to care for and teach others."
David Hughes, MD, FACS | Endocrine Surgeon

"Our patients give us a gift by allowing us to be part of their journey. My responsibility is to ensure we continue to train excellent surgeons who cherish that trust."
Gifty Kwakye, MD, MPH | Colorectal Surgeon

"Surgical training at Michigan is about learning to be courageous. It is about having the courage to lead in the operating room to the take the best care possible for a patient. It is the courage to take on an ambitious research idea and make it a reality."
Megan Lane, MD | Plastic Surgery Resident

Dr. Katherine Gallagher and two team members in the operating room

"Mentoring clinician-scientists in translational research is something I am passionate about. Nothing beats the intellectual curiosity and the new inspiration to impact patient care than the next generation of surgeon-scientists."
Katherine Gallagher, MD | Vascular Surgeon

"There is no greater privilege than the ability to provide surgical care to a patient in need, while also being afforded the opportunity to train future generations of surgeons who will do the same."
Nabeel Obeid, MD | Minimally Invasive Surgeon

Dr. Erin Perrone with a patient and family member

"I’ve always wanted to work with children and enjoy interacting with them and their families every day. I am honored when families choose me to be their child’s surgeon."
Erin Perrone, MD | Pediatric Surgeon

"I am privileged to stand in the intersectional space between a world class university and the global stage, trying to facilitate solutions to global surgical problems."
Krishnan Raghavendran, MBBS | Critical Care Surgeon

"I was once told: to teach is to touch a life forever. At Michigan Medicine, the very best doctors embrace this responsibility with their patients and the next generation of physician leaders."
Gurjit Sandhu, PhD | Education Scientist

Dr. Glenn Wakam and fellow residents listening to a presentation

"It is an honor to train at a place where so many giants in our profession have once stood. While many aspects of the institution have changed for the better over time, clinical excellence will always remain."
Glenn Wakam, MD | General Surgery Resident

"As a complete caregiver, it’s gratifying to improve the lives of individual patients in surgery one day and implement large-scale improvements to our entire healthcare delivery system the next."
Scott Regenbogen, MD, MPH | Colorectal Surgeon

Dr. Burney demonstrating a surgical technique to a student in a classroom

"Teaching and learning are endeavors that require intensity and engagement on the part both of the teacher and the learner."
Richard Burney, MD | Endocrine Surgeon Emeritus

"This environment has inspired me to surpass the definition of success that I envisioned as my younger self. For my future self, success will be defined by my ability to inspire others to pursue their passions, carve their own path, and be unapologetically human."
Erika Sears, MD, MS | Plastic Surgeon

"Our greatest privilege as surgeons is to be invited into people’s lives at their most vulnerable moments, and to be entrusted with walking alongside them through their journey. Traveling that path informs everything else we do, and inspires us to always be getting better."
Christopher Sonnenday, MD | Transplant Surgeon

Dr. Valeria Valbuena in the operating room

"I want to inspire others to believe fearlessly in their dreams. To reinvent our field’s definition of excellence and transform surgery into a specialty where everyone can thrive."
Valeria Valbuena, MD | General Surgery Resident

"Basic research is driven by our innate intellectual curiosity, but it must be paired with great discipline if we are to ensure that it is relevant to improving patients’ lives."
Randy Seeley, PhD | Research Scientist

"As a U-M faculty member, it is my privilege to provide care for our veterans and to train the next generation of surgeons."
Pasithorn Suwanabol, MD | Colorectal Surgeon

"The beauty in what we do is the opportunity to transform someone’s life through surgery. I love my job at Michigan for the clinical opportunities, the privilege to work with the passionate trainees and for the dedication to individuality."
Chandu Vemuri, MD, FACS | Vascular Surgeon

"To be entrusted with the opportunity to care for patients at their most vulnerable point is the ultimate privilege. To empower others to do so by teaching and to improve our delivery of surgical care nationally and globally further magnifies that impact."
Hari Nathan, MD, PhD | Hepatopancreaticobiliary Surgeon

"Together, we are extraordinary! I am grateful to serve . . . our patients, our soldiers, and the next generation of surgical leaders."
Dawn Coleman, MD | Vascular Surgeon

"A happy life is equal parts loving family and important work."
Michael Mulholland, MD, PhD | Hepatopancreaticobiliary Surgeon

"Compassion when attending to wounds of the flesh is humanistic; however, gratitude while attending to the injuries of the spirit is divine."
Matthew Delano, MD, PhD | Critical Care Surgeon

"The greatest lesson I’ve learned as a resident at Michigan is the importance of community – how important it is to support each other as co-residents, how to mentor and be mentored, and how to serve the community we care for."
Ton Wang, MD | General Surgery Resident

"Over the course of my career at Michigan, I have been fortunate to study new cancer treatments in the lab, move them into clinical trials, and ultimately offer them to my patients and directly witness the benefits. The chance to help transform cancer care, and be able to educate and encourage others to do the same, has been an amazing opportunity."
Michael Sabel, MD | Oncology Surgeon

"The real signature of a Michigan Surgeon is not just what you absorb from those around you, but what they help you discover and cultivate about yourself. The department's core value of diversity includes diversity of thought and career vision and is aggressively committed to developing your own vision and your own talent to move the field forward in a way that only you can do it. It's authentic. It's what makes a Michigan Surgeon."
Andrew Ibrahim, MD, MS | General Surgeon

"Cancer is a global disease and touches nearly every family in some way. Cutting-edge research drives the mission to increase survivorship and improve outcomes. There is hope found in combination therapy – including conventional therapy (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy) and immunotherapy. I am pleased and honored to be a part of the University of Michigan’s front line in cancer immunology and immunotherapy research."
Weiping Zou, MD, PhD | Research Scientist

“I am passionate about providing the best care to my cancer patients. To me, this is much more than discussing a surgical procedure, but means educating my patients about their disease while understanding their values and preferences to allow shared decision-making for their treatment plan. Fortunately, so many patients take part in our translational research program, which is integral to advancing cancer care. We are all working together to make curing cancer a reality.”
Christina Angeles, MD | Oncology Surgeon

"The Lubman Lab is focused on markers of early detection and therapeutic monitoring of various cancers. Our work involves the use of proteomics and glycoproteomics to identify changes in protein structure during the progression of cancer."
David Lubman, PhD | Research Scientist

"Surgical training at Michigan is devoted to not only developing expert technical skill, but also fostering the next generation of leaders in the field of research, education, and patient care. I am privileged to train at an institution that motivates clinician-scientists to develop new therapies and innovations that will transform academic surgery."
Frank Davis, MD | Vascular Surgery Resident

"At Michigan, the opportunities are endless. Wherever your scientific query lies, you will find an expert, a colleague and sometimes a newfound friend who is willing to tackle the problem. The cross-disciplinary efforts are extraordinary and give me tremendous hope for the future of medicine."
Andrea Obi, MD | Vascular Surgeon

"As academic surgeons, we have the opportunity and privilege to attack some of the toughest problems facing our patients. Whether it is developing new treatments for their deadly cancers or understanding how to best deploy the ones that we have, Michigan allows us to work with some of the brightest and most talented people to achieve these goals. I am proud to be a part of this team and effort."
Filip Bednar, MD, PhD | Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgeon

"For me, education should go both ways – seek to learn as much, if not more, as can be taught from our students and staff."
Andrew Chang, MD | Thoracic Surgeon

"I strive to provide care that is equitable, valuable and considerate to patient preference. Working to maximize all three fills my cup and brings me back to work every day"
Tasha Hughes, MD, MPH | Oncology Surgeon

"It is exciting to be in an environment where we can apply the same research skills used to effect clinical practice change to culture change."
Dana Telem, MD, MPH | Minimally Invasive Surgeon