Audience Q&A/Discussion
Joseph C Bancroft Professor, Washington University School of Medicine
Saint Louis, MO
United States - Contact Me
Editor in Chief AATS Journals
Joseph Brancroft Professor of Surgery
Washington University School of Medicine
University Health Network
Toronto, ON
Canada - Contact Me
Dr. Shaf Keshavjee completed his medical training at the University of Toronto in 1985, and subsequently trained in General Surgery, Cardiac Surgery and Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto followed by fellowship training at Harvard University and the University of London for airway surgery and heart-lung transplantation, respectively. He leads a team whose studies in transplantation have had a significant impact on treatment outcomes for patients with lung disease around the world. Dr. Keshavjee is currently Chief of Innovation at University Health Network, University of Toronto.
An integral part of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at UHN, Dr. Keshavjee has taken on leadership roles in all facets of this specialized area of care: as a skilled surgeon and Director of the Toronto Lung Transplant Program; and as a researcher and Director of the Latner Thoracic Research Laboratories. To improve lung function after transplantation, he developed a lung preservation solution to preserve donor lungs for transplant. This solution has become the standard technique used by transplantation programs around the world. Dr.Keshavjee has further attracted worldwide attention for his pioneering research to recondition and repair injured human donor lungs using gene and cell therapies and the Toronto Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion System, making them suitable for transplantation into patients and enhancing the number of donor lungs available.
Dr. Keshavjee has served on the Board of Directors of the ISHLT and the Canadian Society of Transplantation. He has served as a Member of the Board, Treasurer and then the 102nd President of the AATS. He has received numerous awards and honorary fellowships for his continuing contributions to his field, including several lifetime achievement awards. Dr. Keshavjee has recieved several honorary doctoral degrees, the Order of Ontario, and Canada's highest civilian honor as Officer of the Order of Canada for his contributions to medicine.