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Raphael Bueno, MD, has been appointed chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at BWH. He has served as acting division chief since November 2013 and officially assumed the role on June 1, succeeding past chief David Sugarbaker, MD, who will lead a new comprehensive lung disease center at Baylor College of Medicine.
As associate chief of Thoracic Surgery and professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Bueno is a National Cancer Institute-funded investigator who seamlessly combines translational research with a general thoracic surgery practice. Since becoming associate chief in 2001, he has taken on increasing responsibilities in the administration of the division.
Joining BWH's Department of Surgery as an associate surgeon in 1996, Bueno was promoted to senior surgeon in the Division of Thoracic Surgery in 2004. He also serves as senior surgeon at Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Center, Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital and Carney Hospital.
"It's a great privilege to work at an institution with so many remarkable people who have profound clinical roles and yet also conduct research at a very high level using the most innovative tools available to probe cancers of every type," said Bueno. "We have arguably one of the best and biggest thoracic surgery programs in the country, and our goal is to make it even better."
Said Surgery Chair Michael Zinner, MD: "I look forward to working with Dr. Bueno to establish a vision of teamwork and collaboration, promote junior faculty and continue to develop the department's rich research portfolio."
Bueno's primary research involves the development of novel translational tools in genomics that can be used to identify candidate predictive and diagnostic markers for cancer, as well as novel targets for therapy, specifically mesothelioma and lung cancer.
He attended Harvard College, where he majored in biochemistry. He earned his MD at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received the Henry A. Christian award, named after Peter Bent Brigham Hospital's first physician-in-chief. Bueno began his graduate medical training as an intern in surgery at BWH, followed by a surgical residency. He completed a cardiothoracic residency at Mass. General Hospital and was recruited back to the Brigham to establish a thoracic surgery practice and research laboratory.
Bueno is working with Bruce Levy, MD, chief of Pulmonary Medicine, to establish a multidisciplinary lung center at BWH, which will bring together clinicians and researchers in order to enhance care and promote innovation focused on patients with diseases affecting the lungs.