Here are 10 physicians recently hitting notable milestones in clinical practice and leadership, as reported by Becker’s:
1. A team of providers from Morgantown, W.Va.-based WVU Medicine became the first in the U.S. to treat a pancreatic lesion using endoscopic ultrasound-guided microwave ablation. Led by Shailendra Singh, MD, a gastroenterologist and endoscopist with the WVU Cancer Institute, the team performed the procedure at WVU Medicine’s J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, also in Morgantown.
2. Alex Vaccaro, MD, PhD, and Paul Celestre, MD, became the first surgeons to use Spine Wave’s new Testa TP pivoting spacer system, a newly released non-expanding, 3D-printed titanium device for transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion.
3. Ehsan Jazini, MD, completed the first two-level lumbar disc replacement combined with the TOPS spine system at Reston (Va.) Hospital. The milestone case restored the patient’s height and mobility using a 360-degree reconstructive approach following previous spinal fusion.
4. Benjamin Weisenthal, MD, of Knoxville (Tenn.) Orthopaedic Clinic is the first surgeon in East Tennessee to perform endoscopic spine surgery. He has completed more than two dozen procedures at the practice’s surgery center, offering patients an “ultra-minimally invasive” option.
5. Kornelis Poelstra, MD, PhD, performed the world’s first spine surgery using the first FDA-cleared multi-arm, navigation-based robotic system at Southern Hills Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas. The platform aims to enhance precision and reduce operating and recovery time.
6. John Zerwas, MD, received the 2024 Distinguished Service Award from the American Society of Anesthesiologists.
7. William Evans III, MD, pioneers Kentucky’s first EUS-guided RFA for pancreatic cancer: Dr. Evans, a gastroenterologist at Louisville-based Norton Audubon Hospital, performed Kentucky’s first endoscopic ultrasound–guided radiofrequency ablation for pancreatic cancer.
8. Fátima Rodriguez, MD, associate professor of medicine and section chief of preventive cardiology at Stanford (Calif.) Medicine, will receive the 2025 Joseph A. Vita Award at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in November in New Orleans Nov. 9.
9. Norio Fukami, MD, performed the first procedure in EndoQuest’s endoluminal surgery trial: Dr. Fukami, a gastroenterologist at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic has completed the first procedure in EndoQuest Robotics’ U.S. trial of its endoluminal surgical system.
10. Mohamad Eloubeidi, MD, brings next-generation biopsy innovation to Alabama: Dr. Eloubeidi, director of endoscopy at Anniston-based Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center and president of the Alabama Gastroenterology Society, led the state’s first advanced EUS-guided biopsy procedure using a device that delivers larger, higher-quality tissue samples.
