VCU news

By Leha Byrd

As part of the VCU Health Hume-Lee Transplant Center’s celebration of its 60th anniversary, Francis Delmonico, M.D., an international lecturer on organ donation and human organ trafficking, will be the keynote speaker for a continuing medical education event Dec. 2. Delmonico’s presentation is part of an open discussion about updates and best practices for organ transplantation that will take place at the Hermes A. Kontos Medical Sciences Building, 1217 E. Marshall St., from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Delmonico, who completed his surgical training with the VCU Health Transplant Center’s namesakes, David Hume, M.D., and H.M. Lee, M.D., is the emeritus director of renal transplantation at Harvard Medical School at Massachusetts General Hospital. A member of the MGH Department of Surgery for nearly 37 years, he is also past president of The Transplantation Society and has served as medical director of the New England Organ Bank since 1995. He is also past president of United Network for Organ Sharing and travels the country speaking about organ donation, organ trafficking and the exploitation of the poor as a source of organs for the rich.

Marlon Levy, M.D., chair of the Division of Transplant Surgery and director of the VCU Health Hume-Lee Transplant Center, said it’s an honor to host such a renowned speaker who has ties to VCU Health.

“Dr. Delmonico is a world authority and moral compass on the topic of organ donation and organ trafficking, and is one of our most illustrious trainees,” he said.  

Throughout this year, Hume-Lee has used milestones and key messages to commemorate its 60th anniversary, including performing its 5,000th patient transplant and participating in and hosting events during National Donate Life Month in April. 

Delmonico’s visit is a fitting capstone for a year that, Levy says, was intentionally focused on Hume-Lee’s initiatives, coordinated care and physicians’ expertise in the transplantation field.    

“We are pleased to host Dr. Delmonico to share his insights and advocacy in the field with Richmond’s medical community. This is information we all need and should be mindful of as we treat patients, and serve as thought leaders in transplantation,” Levy said.  

As part of his visit, Delmonico wants to emphasize how extensive organ trafficking is worldwide and says “engaging governments” is the way to bring the issue to the front of conversations. In 2016, Delmonico was appointed by Pope Francis to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and is an adviser to the World Health Organization in matters of organ donation and transplantation.

The event will also include discussion about future best practices for liver, heart and kidney transplantation, nursing careers in transplantation and developments in transplant immunology. That discussion will be led by Thalachallour Mohanakumar, Ph.D., director of the Norton Thoracic Institute Research Laboratory at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix.

The event is open to the public. Registration is available on the VCU Health website or for more information contact Katie Mardigian at katie.mardigian@vcuhealth.org.