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Department of Surgery Research

The Department of Surgery at Massachusetts General Brigham provides expert, personalized care and performs innovative research to improve the quality, safety and outcomes of surgery.

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Email: mgbsurgeryresearch@mgb.org
mgbsurgeryresearch@mgb.org

Overview

Mass General Brigham Department of Surgery is among the top surgical research programs in the United States. Faculty make key clinical observations every day that can be translated into research advances. The Department's leading-edge research programs contribute important new knowledge to both the surgical and broader medical communities, with diverse areas of research supported by robust extramural support from the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense.
Our faculty are conducting research that makes a global impact and supports individuals from every background. Whether they are exploring the boundaries of vision, making significant advances in aging and organ transplants, or partnering with industry on major clinical trials, their work is advancing new discoveries throughout surgical care.

Research focus areas

Mass General Brigham has one of the largest research programs among US surgery departments. Members carry out basic science, outcomes and clinical research backed by over $50+ million in annual funding. Our work contributes important new knowledge to both the surgical and broader medical community.

Centers of Excellence in Surgery

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Center for Engineering in Medicine
The CEMS focuses on several different research thrusts that combine the principles of engineering and medicine in order to find new solutions that push the envelope of health care technology. The center draws strength from its broad and collaborative spirit and from its affiliations with surrounding biomedical research institutions including Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Shriners Burns Hospital and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Center for Surgery and Public Health

Founded in 2005 as a joint initiative of Harvard Medical School, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, CSPH brings together multidisciplinary expertise and diverse collaborators at the intersection of surgery and public health. Utilizing innovative research methodologies grounded in clinical reality, CSPH has developed surgical safety checklists, created a national agenda for surgical disparities research, and launched the pioneering work of rising stars in surgical health services research.

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Center for Transplantation Sciences

At the Center for Transplantation Sciences (CTS), researchers are improving outcomes and quality of life for transplant patients by advancing our understanding of immune responses following transplantation; developing strategies to achieve immune tolerance; achieving pig-to-human xenotransplantation.

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Patient Reported Outcomes, Values, and Experiences (PROVE) Center

The mission of the Patient-Reported Outcome, Value and Experience (PROVE) Center is to expand the collection, analysis and use of patient-reported outcomes data in surgery. The PROVE Center focuses on using innovative techniques to study outcomes that matter most to patients and their caregivers. Through collaboration with clinicians, researchers, patient advocates and policymakers, PROVE seeks to amplify the patient voice in surgical decision-making and care.

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Shaping the future of surgery

The Department of Surgery is deeply committed to training expert clinicians, researchers, clinical investigators, and medical educators who will go on to be future leaders in the field.
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Explore training opportunities
https://research.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/education-and-training/graduate-medical-education/training-opportunities-search-results?q=surgery

Asking the questions that matter

In a recent study, a thoracic surgery research team at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital showed that lung cancer screening guidelines set by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force - requiring the equivalent of a pack a day for 20 years - miss a large proportion of cases and fail to close a screening gap between Black and white patients. That gap means lung cancer among Black patients is too often caught later in the disease’s course, leading to higher mortality. The researchers, whose work was published earlier this year in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, suggest switching instead to a simple measure that would recommend annual screening for anyone who’s smoked for 20 years, regardless of how many cigarettes they smoke a day.
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Learn more about this work from our Thoracic Surgery Division
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2024/09/to-assess-a-smokers-lung-cancer-risk-think-years-not-packs/

Patient Care

Innovative Care for Recovery after Trauma

The Stepping Strong Transforming Recovery After Injury for the Long-term (TRAIL) Clinic, originally launched as a Stepping Strong Innovator Award project, is now a fully operational care model at Brigham and Women’s Hospital where it provides vital support to patients in their recovery from traumatic injuries.
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Learn more about the TRAIL Clinic
https://steppingstrong.bwh.harvard.edu/trail-clinic/

"One of the most unique parts of research in the Department of Surgery is the direct connection to clinical care and strong track record of innovation and discovery. Our surgeons and scientists are leading the way in leveraging clinical observations, insight, and novel technology to impact the future of surgical care and offer our patients the best possible outcome while training the next generation of physician scientists."

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Genevieve Boland, MD, PhD

https://connects.catalyst.harvard.edu/Profiles/display/Person/60145

  • Vice Chair of Research, MGB Integrated Department of Surgery

How to reach us

For inquiries related to research collaborators, education, or clinical partnerships
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Email: mgbsurgeryresearch@mgb.org
mgbsurgeryresearch@mgb.org