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Dr. Marc Bessler has been appointed director of the Minimal Access Surgery Center (MASC) at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, where he is also surgical director of Laparoscopic Surgery and director of the Center for Obesity Surgery. He is assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

At NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, the MASC performs many kinds of minimal access operations, from removal of solid organs such as spleen and kidney to gastric bypass for obesity, esophagectomy for cancer, and hernia repair. MASC also offers one of the nation's premiere fellowship training programs in minimal access surgery.

Among his numerous surgical accomplishments, Dr. Bessler is currently studying hormonal and immune responses to minimally invasive surgery compared with traditional open surgery, and the effects on tumor growth and metastasis.

"Dr. Bessler has done much to promote and demonstrate the advantages of minimally invasive surgery. He is a natural fit for this position," says Dr. Eric A. Rose, surgeon-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and chairman of the department of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

According to Dr. Bessler, his goals for his new position include (1) increasing resident and physician education in minimal access surgery, (2) expanding clinical programs, and (3) developing and using new technologies, especially in the area of robotics.

Dr. Bessler received his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine, and completed his general surgery residency at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, where he was a fellow in Surgical Endoscopy. Subsequently, he received advanced training in laparoscopy, endoscopy, microsurgery, gastroplasty, and gastric bypass. He was co-director of the Laparoscopic Physiology Research Laboratory at Columbia University Medical Center, 1996-2002. Previously he was resident director of the Blakemore Laboratory for Surgical Research, 1992-1993.