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A leading pioneer of advanced techniques in transplantation surgery, Dr. Sandip Kapur has been appointed chief of the Division of Transplantation Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Previously the acting head of the Division, Dr. Kapur is currently associate professor of surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College and director of Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Programs at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell.

NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell and its medical partner The Rogosin Institute have nearly tripled the annual number of transplants performed over the last two and half years, with a total of 210 performed in 2007. This feat was made possible through advances like kidney swaps and blood type–incompatible procedures that have revolutionized live-organ-donor transplantations. According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital has the largest transplantation program in the United States, including the highest volume of kidney and heart transplants.

Currently, Dr. Kapur, along with Dr. Manikkam Suthanthiran, is co-leading the first-ever clinical trial of a novel molecular test that can help predict organ rejection and may eventually free organ recipients from having to take the drugs for the rest of their lives.

Recently, he helped lead one of the first successful "kidney chain" or NEAD (never-ending altruistic donor) kidney transplant procedures. A California woman donated her kidney to a stranger in New York City, resulting in life-saving kidney transplantations for three patients. Going forward, the innovative arrangement will potentially benefit hundreds of the 70,000 kidney patients on the national transplantation waiting list.

With his colleagues, Dr. Kapur helped lead the first successful islet cell transplant in New York City, giving diabetes patients a new option to alleviate the disease's debilitating symptoms.

"An immensely talented surgeon, inspirational leader and teacher, Dr. Kapur is uniquely qualified to be chief of transplantation surgery. We look forward to continued innovation in our transplant program," says Dr. Fabrizio Michelassi, chairman of the Department of Surgery and the Lewis Atterbury Stimson Professor of Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College, and surgeon-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

"Transplantation is the gift of life and I am grateful for the opportunity to help our patients enjoy happy and productive lives," says Dr. Kapur. "I look forward to collaborating with my colleagues as we build this program by recruiting new members of our already stellar transplantation team and pursue advances and innovations that improve the lives of our patients."

Dr. Kapur earned his medical degree from Weill Cornell Medical College in 1990. He completed his internship and residency in general surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, and was a research fellow in transplant immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College and The Rogosin Institute from 1993 to 1994. Dr. Kapur went on to complete a fellowship in Multi-Organ Transplantation at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He joined the faculty of Weill Cornell Medical College in 1998 as an assistant professor of surgery, and as an adjunct assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

He is a member of many professional societies, including the American College of Surgeons, the Association for Academic Surgery, the Society of University Surgeons, the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, the American Society of Transplantation, Transplantation Society, the Cell Transplant Society and the New York Surgical Society.

He is a member of the Board of Directors for the New York Organ Donor Network and serves nationally on the UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) Pancreas Committee. He is a member of the editorial board for the journal Transplantation and he has published more than 50 peer-reviewed papers. He serves as associate director for student clerkships in surgery since 2005. He is a preceptor for medical student surgical clerkships and has served as a faculty mentor for surgical house staff since 1998. He also serves as the surgical director of the Weill Cornell Physicians Assistant Program since 2003.

Dr. Kapur lives in Englewood, N.J.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, located in New York City, is one of the leading academic medical centers in the world, comprising the teaching hospital NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medical College, the medical school of Cornell University. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell provides state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine, and is committed to excellence in patient care, education, research and community service. Weill Cornell physician-scientists have been responsible for many medical advances — from the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer to the synthesis of penicillin, the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S., the first clinical trial for gene therapy for Parkinson's disease, the first indication of bone marrow's critical role in tumor growth, and, most recently, the world's first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally-conscious brain-injured patient. NewYork-Presbyterian, which is ranked sixth on the U.S.News & World Report list of top hospitals, also comprises NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/The Allen Pavilion. Weill Cornell Medical College is the first U.S. medical college to offer a medical degree overseas and maintains a strong global presence in Austria, Brazil, Haiti, Tanzania, Turkey and Qatar. For more information, visit www.nyp.org and www.med.cornell.edu.