For John Iguidbashian and Alejandro Suarez-Pierre, general surgery residents in the Department of Surgery at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, the research started as a way to give patients who were eligible for lung transplants more accurate information about their life expectancy after the surgery.
Greg Glasgow | 
June 17, 2022
Patient Care Awareness Transplant Center
It happened so fast, and it was so unexpected.
In August 2020, Mario Carrasco got what he suspected was COVID-19 and took Tylenol to combat his high fever. When that didn’t work, he took an antibiotic he had received from Mexico and eventually felt better. For several months afterward, he felt fine. He felt like he always does.
Rachel Sauer | June 15, 2022
Patient Care Community Mental Health
Men looking for information on their physical and sexual health often turn to the internet, where low testosterone is a commonly searched — and commonly misunderstood — topic.
Greg Glasgow | June 10, 2022
Research Patient Care Community
Patients who come from socially vulnerable backgrounds are at greater risk for complications following colon surgery, recently published research has found.
Rachel Sauer | May 27, 2022
Research Patient Care Education Community
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, intensive care unit (ICU) beds were in limited supply, and the pandemic only exacerbated this growing concern. Since the pandemic began, ICU resources have been in such demand that clinicians across the United States and world have struggled to meet the need.
Rachel Sauer | May 24, 2022
Why are older adults more likely to get seriously ill or even die from pneumonia? It turns out the cause may have as much to do with the gut as it does with the lungs.
Greg Glasgow | May 11, 2022
Patient Care Community Awareness Transplant Center
At first, she was reluctant to talk about it – a little sheepish, even. The obvious question was, “Why are you doing this?” And though she had answers, none of them were quick or easy.
Rachel Sauer | April 06, 2022
Patient Care Community Pediatrics Urology
For children with urologic disorders, the relationships they form early on with their urologists often turn out to be among the most important connections of their young lives.
Greg Glasgow | March 02, 2022
Patient Care Community Transplant Center
Service members join the military with a passion to serve, and that passion remains long after they have fulfilled their formal commitments. Upon their departure from military service, many veterans remain committed to serving others. Their military experience often inspires them to become active in their communities at home.
Khushnuma Damkevala | February 14, 2022
Research Patient Care Plastic Surgery
From Silly Putty to the microwave oven, there is a long history of consumer products “accidentally” discovered during the scientific discovery process.
Greg Glasgow | February 03, 2022
Patient Care Quality and Clinical Effectiveness
When they realized their number of patients with urinary tract infections caused by urinary catheters was tracking above the national average, urologic oncologist Janet Kukreja, MD, and Shannon Bortolotto, APRN, clinical nurse specialist at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital, knew they had to take action.
Greg Glasgow | February 01, 2022
Research Patient Care Community Surgical Oncology
While both patients and clinicians prioritize information transparency, a 21st Century Cures Act requirement for the immediate release of test and lab results is proving more controversial, according to recently published survey results of clinicians and patients.
Rachel Sauer | January 21, 2022
Patient Care Faculty Clinical Research Clinical Trials
After the chemotherapy and radiation treatments, when she was discussing necessary surgery with her UCHealth Cancer Center care team, Irma Lechuga learned her rectal cancer surgery would include creation of a temporary ileostomy.
Rachel Sauer | January 05, 2022
Patient Care Press Coverage Pediatric Cancer Kidney Cancer Urology
In 2021, a Crested Butte family received a life-changing diagnosis. During the holiday season, their story is an apparent reminder that sometimes the best gifts are never found under a tree.
Denver 7 | December 23, 2021
Research Patient Care Education Community Faculty
For the 50 years of his career, Ernest Moore, MD, a distinguished professor of surgery, has been eager to go to work – not just caring for patients or the challenges of the operating room, but for the myriad paths of research he has pursued since he was an undergraduate.
Rachel Sauer | December 20, 2021
Research Patient Care Education Community
The University of Colorado Department of Surgery's commitment to improve every life was spotlighted numerous times by faculty, staff, trainees, and students throughout 2021.
Department of Surgery | December 16, 2021
Innovation Patient Care Education Community Transplant Center
Empower Field at Mile High in Denver seats about 76,000 – a huge space with the population of a small city when filled to capacity.
Rachel Sauer | December 15, 2021
Patient Care Community Prostate Cancer Bladder Cancer Urology
Happy Movember! No, that’s not a spelling error. Movember has been celebrated each November since 2003 to bring awareness (and funding) to men’s health issues, particularly prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health and suicide prevention.
Valerie Gleaton | November 18, 2021
Patient Care Community Cardiothoracic Surgery
With two female cardiothoracic surgeons in its ranks, the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Colorado School of Medicine is ahead of the curve when it comes to gender representation in the field. By one recent estimate, just 8% of cardiothoracic surgeons in the country are female.
Greg Glasgow | November 17, 2021
Patient Care Community Plastic Surgery
The victory lap came 50 years after high school, in a female restroom at Denver’s East High School.
Rachel Sauer | November 15, 2021
Back on Feb. 25, competing in a chess tournament was only a hope for Griffin McConnell, now 17, of Golden. Doctors had just finished his second hemispherectomy, a procedure that disconnects the left and right side of the brain and causes some paralysis. The brain surgery was Griffin’s fourth since being diagnosed at age 5 with epilepsy.
The Denver Post | November 01, 2021
Research Patient Care Community
There’s a significant body of research on opioids – how they’re metabolized, how they react with other drugs, the physiology of addiction, and how they’re prescribed, among the many areas of focus.
Rachel Sauer | October 27, 2021
Research Patient Care Press Releases
The U.S. Department of Defense is funding a study by Arek Wiktor, MD, associate professor of GI, trauma, and endocrine surgery and interim medical director of the UCHealth Burn and Frostbite Center – Anschutz Medical Campus, to aid in treatment of military and civilian burn patients.
Greg Glasgow | October 19, 2021
Patient Care Community Transplant Center
Research shows that Hispanic patients spend longer on the transplant waiting list than other ethnic groups. They also face higher mortality rates while waiting for a transplant. With a goal to change this disparity in transplantation, Elizabeth Pomfret, MD, PhD, chief of the Division of Transplant Surgery at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, created a clinic to better serve the Hispanic community in the Rocky Mountain region.
Khushnuma Damkevala | October 13, 2021
Patient Care Community Child & Adolescent GITES
Over the past five decades, childhood overweight and obesity has transitioned from public health concern to public health crisis. In 1971, 5.2% of U.S. children ages 2 to 19 were experiencing obesity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a number that increased to 19.3% by 2018.
Rachel Sauer | September 30, 2021
Patient Care Education Community Vascular Surgery
The traditional path for surgeons after they’ve completed medical school is a five-year general surgery residency followed by a two-year fellowship in an area of specialization. Even for surgeons who choose their specialty in medical school, this has been the most common training path.
Rachel Sauer | September 10, 2021
Research Patient Care Community COVID-19 Quality and Clinical Effectiveness
Ideas and innovation don’t always co-exist with convenience. On the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, the road to a novel mask design to address the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic took some unexpected twists and turns.
Rachel Sauer | September 08, 2021
Patient Care Community Plastic Surgery
“Basketball, playing with sheep, playing with goats, playing with dogs, horse camp, friends ...”
Nine-year-old Danner Plumhoff is rattling off a list of her summer plans. Many of these activities wouldn’t have been possible for her last summer, when she was fresh off an intensive craniofacial surgery. It was her biggest surgery to date, but as a child with a rare variant of Crouzon syndrome, it was hardly her first.
Valerie Gleaton | July 20, 2021
Research Patient Care Vascular Surgery
Clinical pathways are a vital tool in providing patients with high-quality, standardized care, as well as improving the value of health care. But they are only helpful if physicians actually use them.
Greg Glasgow | July 12, 2021
Opioid prescribing preferences and practices among surgical residents and faculty differ, according to a new study published in the journal Surgery.
Valerie Gleaton | July 06, 2021
Research Patient Care Education Community
The University of Colorado School of Medicine Department of Surgery hosted its Resident and Fellowship Graduation at Denver Botanic Gardens on June 11.
Valerie Gleaton | June 16, 2021
Research Patient Care Community
Patients’ rights advocates scored a major victory in April, when a provision went into effect that allows patients immediate access to all information in their medical records, including physician notes and test results. The change is part of the 21st Century Cures Act, which was passed by Congress in 2016 and continues to be updated.
Greg Glasgow | June 14, 2021
Research Patient Care Community Burn GITES
Last month, the University of Colorado Burn Center underwent the American Burn Association (ABA) Survey, a verification process that occurs every three years. The Burn Center has achieved continual verification since its first ABA Survey in 1998, and that trend continues this year. The Burn Center received its verification confirmation on May 19, 2021, to continue through April 2024.
Valerie Gleaton | June 03, 2021
Fredric Pieracci, MD, MPH/MSPH, an associate professor in the University of Colorado School of Medicine Department of Surgery, is the senior author on a new paper published in Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases that details the results of a public health initiative to provide affordable bariatric surgery to uninsured Denver County residents.
Valerie Gleaton | April 28, 2021
Patient Care Community Cardiothoracic Surgery
Bryan Raymond was very nearly just another grim entry on the ever-growing list of COVID-19 fatalities. But thanks to efforts by faculty members in the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Department of Surgery, Raymond is a COVID statistic of a different sort — the first person in Colorado to receive a lung transplant related to the virus.
Greg Glasgow | April 26, 2021
Patient Care Community Plastic Surgery
In the past, even relatively minor hand surgery was a major event. For patients, it required anesthesia and numerous hours at the hospital. And for hospitals and providers, it used up extensive material resources and time.
Valerie Gleaton | April 23, 2021
Patient Care Community Awareness Health equity Transplant Center
April is National Donate Life Month — an awareness month that encourages Americans to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors and that honors those who have saved lives through the gift of donation.
Valerie Gleaton | April 09, 2021
For the past nine years, the Surgical Outcomes and Applied Research (SOAR) group at the University of Colorado School of Medicine has been conducting research on health services within the Department of Surgery. A large part of that research has to do with clinical outcomes for surgery patients and how patients fare — in the short term and the long term — after an operation.
Greg Glasgow | April 07, 2021
Patient Care Clinics Vascular Surgery
A new vascular surgery clinic opened in February on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, offering easy access for patients with venous disease, peripheral artery disease, and mesenteric and renal artery disease. The clinic also offers hemodialysis procedures for arteriovenous fistula and graft maintenance.
Department of Surgery | March 02, 2021
Research Patient Care Quality and Clinical Effectiveness
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought new attention to the safety of patients during surgery. But long before the concerns brought on by coronavirus, the CU Department of Surgery was working to make patient safety a priority.
Department of Surgery | January 06, 2021
Knowing your family health history is one of the first steps to finding out if you may have a higher risk of cancer and might need early screenings. Ela Carta is no stranger to the struggles of having a family history of cancer. At the age of 30, Carta’s aunt, Audie, began urging Carta to get a mammogram. With a long family history of breast cancer and fibrocystic breast disease, Carta knew she had to be proactive with her health.
Chanthy Na | October 21, 2020
Research Patient Care Community Prostate Cancer Urology
Although prostate cancer is treatable when found early, there are common fears that men share concerning prostate cancer.
“I hear from patients all the time stating they do not want to get tested and they do not want to know if they have prostate cancer. Due to the possible side effects associated with treatment,” says Paul Maroni, MD, associate professor in the Department of Surgery, Urology Division, program director of the Urologic Cancer Care Center and University of Colorado (CU) Cancer Center member.
Department of Surgery | October 01, 2020
Research Patient Care Community Prostate Cancer Cancer Urology
Growing up, Douglas “Bucky” Dilts was all too familiar with the dangers of cancer. “My mother ran a cancer tumor registry at St Joseph's Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia for over 25 years. She was always telling us about different types of cancer, so cancer was always at the forefront.”
Department of Surgery | September 23, 2020
For more than 25 years, 5280 magazine has asked physicians in the Denver area whom they would trust to treat themselves or a loved one. This year 21 of our surgeons in 12 specialties made the list.
Shelly Lange | August 10, 2020
Patient Care Community Plastic Surgery
As a young child, Jennifer Falomir-Lopez just wanted to look “normal” like all the other kids. She knew she was different but couldn’t explain to her friends why she looked different. Jennifer was born with a cleft lip and cleft alveolus.
Chanthy Na | July 28, 2020
The UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital Vascular Surgery Clinic has been named a TCAR Center of Excellence by Silk Road Medical, for the high quality of its care team and patient outcomes for transcarotid artery revascularization (TCAR) to treat carotid artery stenosis.
Shelly Lange | July 17, 2020
As the end of Men’s Health Month approaches, it is important to acknowledge that men often do not visit the doctor unless there is a serious issue or concern. In addition to exercising and a healthy diet, men need to make sure they are up to date on important health screenings to focus on preventative care and health maintenance.
Department of Surgery | June 26, 2020
U.S. News and World Report released its 2020-21 Best Children’s Hospitals rankings this week, placing three pediatric surgical specialties at Children’s Hospital Colorado provided by University of Colorado School of Medicine Department of Surgery faculty in the top 10, including No. 1 for gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery.
Department of Surgery | June 17, 2020
Each year 5280 magazine has asked physicians in the Denver area whom they would trust to treat themselves or a loved one. This year 24 of our surgeons in 12 specialties made the list.
Department of Surgery | September 02, 2019
Patient Care Community Trauma GITES
Trapped by a fire in her Aurora apartment building, Alina Miller was forced to jump from a fourth-story window to escape the flames. The fall left her with a broken back and a crushed foot.
Department of Surgery | January 09, 2019
Every year, Denver's 5280 Magazine polls doctors from the Denver metro area, asking whom they would trust if they needed medical treatment for themselves or a loved one. The results are collected and published in the magazine's annual "Top Doctors" issue.
Department of Surgery | December 09, 2018
Patient Care Pancreatic Cancer Cancer
Karen Possehl was diagnosed with cancer in November 2016. At the Mayo Clinic in Arizona, her doctor told her that the type of cancer she had was inoperable and wouldn't respond to radiation or chemotherapy. He expected her to live only a few more months.
Department of Surgery | November 30, 2018
Research Patient Care Community Sarcoma
The CU Sarcoma Clinic is pleased to welcome Breelyn A. Wilky, MD, to our multidisciplinary team. Dr. Wilky joined the Medical Oncology faculty in the cancer clinic on November 1, 2018.
Department of Surgery | November 01, 2018
Patient Care Community Trauma GITES
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the American College of Surgeons have designated UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital a Level I trauma center, making it one of only five hospitals in the state with the highest capabilities for trauma care.
Department of Surgery | October 12, 2018
Research Patient Care Community
Dr. Richard Schulick, Chair of the Department of Surgery, has been named Director of the University of Colorado Cancer Center.
Department of Surgery | June 29, 2018
Research Patient Care Community
Every year, 14 million people around the world, including 1.7 million Americans, are diagnosed with cancer. One of the major challenges in fighting cancer is to understand and manipulate the response of the body's immune system to cancer cells. Recently, an area that has received growing attention and has shown promise in clinical trials is the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Department of Surgery | April 02, 2018
A friendship between two couples that began over CU football games ended up saving a life—and leading to the promise of more lives saved in the future.
Department of Surgery | November 01, 2017
Research Patient Care Community
The health hazards of smoking have been documented for decades, but research on “vaping,” the smoking of electronic cigarettes, is still in its infancy.
Department of Surgery | January 27, 2017
The Division of Transplant Surgery is pleased to introduce two new faculty members.
Department of Surgery | October 09, 2016
Research Patient Care Community
The Society of University Surgeons (SUS) has awarded Dr. Ernest "Gene" Moore its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award. Each year since 2005, the Society has conferred this award on a single surgeon who has made substantial contributions to surgical science over the course of a full career. Previous winners include Frank G. Moody, Ben Eiseman, and Patricia K. Donohoe.
Department of Surgery | March 22, 2016
The Department of Surgery is pleased to congratulate Thomas Robinson, MD, on his promotion to Chief of Surgery at the Denver Veterans Administration Medical Center.
Department of Surgery | January 26, 2015
Research Patient Care Community
Joe and Jean Barban were so moved by the care they received at the Anschutz Medical Campus that they were inspired to give back so that others may benefit as well. Their gift of an endowed chair allows CU to recognize top faculty’s talents, hard work and achievements. In turn, the top faculty who hold endowed chairs and professorships elevate the entire university community: attracting other passionate teachers and scholars, igniting students’ curiosity and making ground-breaking discoveries that bring us closer to solving some of the most challenging problems we face today.
Department of Surgery | April 02, 2014
Legal Reader
June 02, 2022
Over a four-year period, 15 teenagers sustained injuries from e-cigs that exploded, according to the surgeons who treated some of these patients.
News Medical
May 26, 2022
Recently published research shows that when clinicians input eight pre-operative variables into the Surgical Risk Preoperative Assessment System (SURPAS), the SURPAS model accurately predicts post-operative ICU use across nine surgical specialties.
MSN
May 17, 2022
Health authorities have educated us that drinking enough water is absolutely vital for our bodies to function properly. And it is—unless you drink too much of it.
News Medical
May 13, 2022
Why are older adults more likely to get seriously ill or even die from pneumonia? It turns out the cause may have as much to do with the gut as it does with the lungs.
