Author Archives: jarvisjo

When Cristy Brewer needed a liver transplant, coworker Ana Cooke made the selfless decision to become a living donor. UNC surgeons Chirag Desai and Sorabh Kapoor led the complex transplant procedure that gave Brewer a second chance at life while ensuring Cooke’s safety as a donor. Their work highlights the...

After surviving devastating burns at just 6 years old, Elena Castro Rivera is now helping other children heal through advocacy and support. Her inspiring journey was made possible in part by the compassionate care and expertise of UNC’s Jaycee Burn Center and Dr. Felicia Williams, whose dedication helped guide her recovery during...

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — UNC Health now offers kidney transplants from donors with HIV to recipients with HIV, dramatically shortening wait times for carefully selected patients living with HIV. This progress builds on more than a decade of experience under the federal HIV Organ Policy Equity (HOPE) Act and UNC’s integrated expertise...

Dr. Akerman and his team were recently featured for their groundbreaking work in blood-based detection of aortic aneurysms, a condition that can silently weaken the body’s largest artery and become fatal. Traditional detection relies on CT scans, which are costly and expose patients to ionizing radiation. Akerman’s team has developed...

We’re proud to see Dr. Clara Lee, Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the UNC School of Medicine, featured in New York Magazine’s article “The Relentless Quest for a Breast.” Dr. Lee shares her expert insight on the complexity of breast reconstruction following mastectomy — a procedure that holds...

  We are delighted to announce that  Dr. Chirag Desai, MD, FACS has been appointed as the George F. Sheldon, MD Professor in the Department of Surgery. This distinguished honor, approved by the UNC Board of Trustees, recognizes Dr. Desai’s exceptional contributions to surgical innovation, leadership, and patient care. A renowned expert...

Why do rural adults and racial and ethnic minorities with vascular disease get major leg amputations more often? A new study out today in Epidemiology uses artificial intelligence (AI) to solve the mystery, finding an unaccounted-for factor that researchers think points to implicit bias in the clinical decision-making process. “As vascular surgeons...