Chief of Thoracic Surgery
Department of Surgery – Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Dr. Yolonda Colson is a past President of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, Chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. A member of the prestigious National Academy of Medicine, she has also served as Officer and Exam Chair for the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, playing a key role in the first virtual ABTS Certifying Exam. Dr. Colson’s academic background includes a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, an M.D. from Mayo Medical School, and a Ph.D. in pathology (transplant immunology) alongside her general surgery residency at the University of Pittsburgh.
Her clinical interests focus on advancing the detection and treatment of lung cancer, particularly in women. She has been a pioneer in developing novel technologies to improve patient outcomes. She is co-inventor on three patents, has received over 20 foundation grants, and served as principal investigator (PI) or co-PI on 11 NIH and NCI grants. Dr. Colson’s research is dedicated to polymer and nanoparticle drug delivery to prevent cancer recurrence and innovative near-infrared imaging to detect cancer spread in lymph nodes.
Dr. Colson’s work has earned her numerous accolades, including the George H.A. Clowes, Jr. Research Career Development Award from the American College of Surgeons and the Edward M. Kennedy Award for Health Care Innovation. She has mentored over 40 undergraduate, post-doctoral, and Ph.D. candidates, resulting in numerous resident research awards. With over 160 peer-reviewed publications, her research spans transplantation, women’s lung cancer, and sentinel lymph nodes in lung cancer. Dr. Colson continues to lead groundbreaking work in thoracic surgery and cancer research, broadening the understanding of cancer biology and treatment options for patients.
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C. Walton Lillehei Session: Effective Models for Innovation in Cardiothoracic Surgery
Friday, January 24, 2025
2:00pm – 3:30pm PT