Curtis P. Artz MUSC Surgical Society

08/11/2026

Thank you to Alisa Blumenthaler, M.D., and Walker Blanding, M.D., for presenting at today’s Grand Rounds.
Dr. Blumenthaler's presentation was titled "An Abbreviated History of Surgical Deescalation and Modern Shared Decision-Making in Early-Stage Breast Cancer," and Dr. Blanding's presentation was titled "The Art of Escalation: VV ECMO & CTEPH and PTE: Up and Coming."
Dr. Blumenthaler joined MUSC last fall as an Assistant Professor of Surgical Oncology. Dr. Blanding joined the Cardiothoracic Division as an Assistant Professor after completing his training with us last June.

08/06/2026

Check out this recent story discussing advancements in pancreatic cancer treatment on SC Public Radio featuring MUSC surgical oncologist William Hawkins, M.D., FACS.

The audio is a quick 4 min listen!

This week, Bobbi Conner talks with MUSC Dr. William Hawkins about recent advances in pancreatic cancer treatment.

08/05/2026

Yesterday, Steven Kahn, M.D., Chief of Burn Surgery and Professor in the Department of Surgery and Rohit Mittal, M.D., Pediatric Burn Director of the South Carolina Pediatric Burn Center, Shriners Children’s Endowed Professor in Pediatric Burn Care and Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery spoke during the official ribbon cutting of the new pediatric burn care clinic, a partnership between MUSC and Shriners Children’s.

Congratulations to our surgeons Dr. Johnson, Dr. Mittal, Dr. Kahn, and Dr. Lesher (pictured left to right in the second photo) and the entire pediatric burn team for their leadership in bringing this collaboration to life and expanding access to specialized, high-quality burn care for children across the Southeast.

The new outpatient clinic will connect patients and families with Shriners Children’s programs and resources throughout their recovery journey. The clinic is scheduled to begin seeing patients this fall.

08/05/2026

The MUSC Department of Surgery is excited to announce three new faculty members as of August 1, 2026. Please join us in welcoming:

Katharine E. Caldwell, M.D., Division of Surgical Oncology. Dr. Caldwell is a specialist in liver, pancreatic, and bile duct surgery. She focuses on providing compassionate, cutting-edge care for patients facing complex cancers and benign conditions of the liver, pancreas, gallbladder, and bile ducts.

Andrew Cole, M.D., Division of General, Foregut and Metabolic Surgery. Dr. Cole is a board-certified general surgeon specializing in minimally invasive and robotic surgery, with clinical expertise in abdominal wall reconstruction and complex hernia repair, benign foregut surgery, and bariatric surgery.

Rion Tapp, M.D., Division of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. Dr. Tapp is a board-eligible plastic surgeon with clinical interests in general reconstruction, breast reconstruction, microsurgery, and cosmetic surgery.

08/04/2026

MUSC was just ranked South Carolina's No. 1 hospital and cancer center by U.S News & World Report!

Twenty-four MUSC Health procedures and conditions received “high-performing” designations in the 2026-2027 U.S. News & World Report rankings, including three from the Department of Surgery: Aortic Valve Surgery (Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery), Colon Cancer Surgery (Division of Colorectal Surgery), and Lung Cancer Surgery (Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery).

Congratulations to these teams!!!

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Aug. 4, 2026) – MUSC Health has once again achieved best-in-class national and statewide rankings for excellence in patient care at its hospitals, cancer care, obstetrics and gynecology, neurology and neurosurgery among others. MUSC Health University Medical Center in Charleston ...

07/31/2026

Gayathri Devi, Ph.D., M.S., was recently invited to speak at the plenary session at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Cancer Meeting in Vancouver, Canada. Her presentation was part of the Plenary Session titled “Breaking New Ground: Emerging Therapeutic Strategies for Rare Cancer." Her talk discussed targeting the adaptive stress response for rare cancer precision medicine

07/29/2026

The MUSC Division of Transplant Surgery had a strong presence at this year's American Transplant Congress (ATC) conference.

Santosh Nagaraju, M.D., Joseph Scalea, M.D., MBA, Steven Hanish, M.D., Tara Barry, M.D., Diego Di Sabato, M.D., John McGillicuddy, M.D., and Dirk Van Der Windt, M.D. all presented on various topics and sessions during the meeting.

07/27/2026

Congratulations to Kannan Pudar Samy, M.D., on his recent $25,000 Discovery Pilot Award from the South Carolina Clinical and Translational Research (SCTR) Institute.

SCTR's Discovery program is designed to seed promising early-stage research, and this funding will help generate the preliminary data needed to pursue larger national grants and clinical trials. Dr. Samy’s project will evaluate a new technique for recovering kidneys at the time of organ donation to improve the quality and viability of organs available for transplant.

07/24/2026

Shaune Shivers, Office Manager for General Surgery/ Trauma; Sarah Walters, an APP for Cardiac Surgery; and John Hallmark, M.D., a PGY-4 in the General Surgery Residency Program, were named Employees of the Month!

Shaune's nominator wrote, "Despite significant changes within the division, Shaune has remained a steady and dependable leader. Organized, responsive, and always willing to help, Shaune keeps the team on track and is truly deserving of this recognition."

Sarah's nominator wrote, "Sarah consistently demonstrates exceptional clinical expertise, professionalism, and compassion. Through dedicated patient advocacy and support of colleagues, Sarah makes a lasting positive impact and is highly deserving of this recognition."

Dr. Hallmark's nominator wrote, "John is an outstanding chief resident who leads by example, supports junior residents, and consistently demonstrates excellent technical skills and clinical judgment. A pleasure to work with, John is highly deserving of this recognition."

Thank you to all our award recipients for continuing to go above and beyond. Your hard work does not go unnoticed ❤.

07/22/2026

Calling all MUSC Department of Surgery Alumni!

Will you be attending the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress 2026 in Washington, DC? We warmly invite MUSC Department of Surgery alumni to join the Curtis P. Artz MUSC Surgical Society for a special evening of camaraderie on Sunday, September 27, at 6:00 p.m.

Join us at Via Sophia to reconnect with fellow alumni, celebrate our shared MUSC surgical legacy, and enjoy time with friends, colleagues, mentors, and the next generation of surgical leaders. This gathering is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen professional relationships and renew the bonds that make our MUSC surgical community so special.

Please complete the Microsoft Form to RSVP and reserve your place at the dinner: https://forms.office.com/r/gWeryn6xf9.