News

Without intervention, physician Edwin Villarreal’s prognosis was 100 percent mortality; but he is alive and well after receiving treatment for an often-fatal condition, HLH. 

Jacqueline Garonzik Wang, M.D., Ph.D., director of the UAB Division of Transplantation and co-director of the Comprehensive Transplant Institute, has been named the Arnold G. Diethelm Endowed Chair in Transplantation Surgery, recognizing excellence in academic surgery and leadership in the division.

Anushka Arora, an undergraduate researcher in UAB's Honors College Personalized Pathway program, won first place in her category at the UAB Spring Expo for her poster presentation, “A Pilot Study: Psychosocial Correlates of Pain in Patients with Ulcerative Colitis.”

As appendicitis is more common in the summer months, a UAB expert provides insight on understanding its symptoms and causes for timely diagnosis and treatment. 

A UAB researcher received NIH funding to study whether a ketogenic diet can help preserve muscle mass, strength and physical function in older adults hospitalized with pneumonia, potentially improving recovery and independence after discharge.

The UAB Cardiovascular Institute (CVI) has earned a three-star rating—the highest distinction awarded by the Society for Vascular Surgery's Vascular Quality Initiative (SVS VQI) for the fourth consecutive year through the 2025 Commitment to Vascular Quality Improvement (CVQI) Awards.

The UAB Medicine Leadership Development Office (LDO) is proud to honor the latest graduates of the Emerging Leaders Series (ELS) — 24 accomplished professionals who represent the breadth and strength of our institution.

John Killian, M.D., Ph.D., volunteer clinical assistant professor in the UAB Division of Transplantation, is the first author of a kidney transplant study that has been named the latest Featured Discovery by the Heersink School of Medicine.

Steven Forsythe, Ph.D., postdoctoral research fellow in the UAB Division of Surgical Oncology, won first place in the data blitz flash talk category at the University of Alabama at Birmingham's 22nd Annual Postdoc Research Day.

The UAB Vein Program, with its outpatient UAB Vein Clinic located at UAB Hospital – Highlands, provides comprehensive evaluation and treatment of the full spectrum of venous disease, from cosmetic concerns to complex conditions such as deep vein thrombosis, chronic venous insufficiency, venous ulcers, and pelvic venous disorders.

The UAB Department of Surgery is proud to announce that Saulat Sheikh, M.D., will serve as the surgical director of the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute’s Liver Transplantation Program, effective Wednesday, July 1, 2026.

  Douglas Anderson, M.D., M.S., associate professor in the UAB Division of Transplantation, has been selected to serve as the Region 3 representative on the Pancreas Transplantation Committee of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN).

Adam W. Beck, M.D., professor of surgery and director of the Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has led an international multidisciplinary consortium that has published a landmark consensus report in Circulation, one of the world’s leading cardiovascular journals.

Douglas Anderson, M.D., M.S., associate professor in the UAB Division of Transplantation, has been appointed to the Ethics and Conflict of Interest Committee of the Society of University Surgeons (SUS).

Martha Tankersley, associate vice president of the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute, has been named a recipient of the second quarter 2026 UAB Values in Action Program (VIP) Award, one of the university’s highest employee recognitions honoring individuals who exemplify UAB’s shared values of collaboration, integrity, respect, and excellence.

Kelly Chapman, BSN, RN, CWOCN, a certified wound, ostomy and continence nurse in the Division of Trauma & Acute Care Surgery and the team-lead and supervisor of the UAB inpatient wound care team, was named the inaugural Certified Nurse of the Year by the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board (WOCNCB).

Brittney Knott, a doctoral candidate and a researcher in the laboratory of Paige Porrett, M.D., Ph.D., will give an oral plenary presentation at the 31st International Congress of the Transplantation Society on September 23, 2026, in Sydney, Australia. 

Bhuwan Giri, M.B.B.S., an assistant professor in the UAB Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery, has been awarded the Career Development Award from the Research Foundation of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons(ASCRS) for his project entitled, “GDT Cell Dysregulation in Bile Acid-Mediated Progression of Colitis-Associated Cancer (CAC).”

For fourth-year medical student Leopold Nkengbeza, art and medicine are two sides of the same calling. From illustrating complex surgical procedures to contributing to the Volker Hall mural, he uses creativity to make medicine more accessible and meaningful.

This spring, the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees awarded the rank of Distinguished Professor to nine faculty members and the rank of University Professor to five faculty members.

Anya McDaniel, UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine second-year student, has been selected as a national recipient of the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) Carolyn L.

The UAB Department of Surgery is honored to recognize the outstanding research contributions from its faculty, trainees, and staff. 

Elizabeth Beierle, M.D., Charles D. McCrary Endowed Chair in the UAB Division of Pediatric Surgery, has been selected as a recipient of the 2026 O’Neal Invests Award from the O’Neal Cancer Center.

Jacob Smith is continuing his recovery two years after a car fell on his head while he was working on it, causing a severe traumatic brain injury, and he is making steady progress in rehabilitation with support from his family and the UAB medical team.

Callie Clowdus, LPN, and Laurel Waldrop, NP, of the Division of Surgical Oncology graduated from the UAB Wound Scholars Advanced Program on May 14, 2026.

UAB Department of Surgery Fay Fletcher Kerner Endowed Chair Herbert Chen, M.D., has been named a distinguished professor, one of the highest academic honors UAB confers, in recognition of his exceptional contributions to surgical education, clinical care, research, and leadership in academic medicine.

Ioannis Liapis, M.D., MPH, a postdoctoral research fellow in the UAB Department of Surgery, recently received the Steve Sotsky Pancreatic Cancer Research Award from the Americas Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA) for his presidential plenary presentation on diagnostic delays in pancreatic cancer at the 2026 AHPBA Annual Meeting, held March 19-22, 2026, in Miami Beach, Florida.

Four surgeons from the UAB Department of Surgery are now providing specialized surgical care to patients in Mobile and Baldwin counties through UAB's partnership with Infirmary Health, which is based out of the Mobile, Alabama area. Katelin Holmes, D.O., Jillian McCabe, M.D.

Jacqueline Garonzik Wang, M.D., Ph.D., director of the UAB Division of Transplantation and co-director of the Comprehensive Transplant Institute, has recently been featured on UAB MedCast.

Tania Arora, M.D., a professor in the UAB Division of Surgical Oncology and Vice Chair of Access and Engagement in the UAB Department of Surgery, has been appointed as co-chair for two prestigious surgical society committees.