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Ara A. Vaporciyan, M.D., F.A.C.S., MHPE

Thoracic Surgeons

1515 Holcombe Blvd Houston TX 77030713-792-2121https://faculty.mdanderson.org/profiles/ara_vaporciyan.html

Ara A. Vaporciyan, M.D., F.A.C.S., MHPE

Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Division of Surgery

About Dr. Vaporciyan

Dr. Ara Vaporciyan is a tenured Professor of Surgery and Chairman of the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. Dr. Vaporciyan began his training in 1982 at the University of Michigan where he obtained an honors degree in cellular and molecular biology then moved to medical school at the same institution. In 1989, he arrived in Houston and began his general surgery residency at The University of Texas Houston Health Science Center. Two of the next 7 years were spent back at The University of Michigan in a postdoctoral research fellowship in the Department of Pathology where he studied inflammatory mediators of lung injury.

After completing his general surgery training in 1996 he began a 2 year fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery with an emphasis in general thoracic surgical oncology at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center. He joined the faculty at MD Anderson in 1998 and has risen through the ranks to full professor.

Meet Ara Vaporciyan, M.D.


Present Title & Affiliation  

Primary Appointment

Chairman, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Professor, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Research Interests  

Dr. Vaporciyan has maintained an active role in research throughout his tenure at M. D. Anderson. Initially involved in laboratory research Dr. Vaporciyan continued his earlier work at the Department of Pathology studying inflammatory mediators. Collaborating with scientists from anesthesiology, cardiology, pulmonology and epidemiology resulted in a number of publications examining, among other things, the role of single nucleotide polymorphisms and other genetic determinants of inflammatory mediated complications after thoracic surgery. He also developed or led a number of internal and external developed clinical trials using inflammatory modulators such as aprotinin, statins, and omega 3 fatty acids.

Mid-way through his career Dr. Vaporciyan became the program director for the newly established ACGME approved cardiothoracic training program at M. D. Anderson. This new assignment quickly grew in scope and then expanded into his research interests as well. In an effort to bring science to the field of education Dr. Vaporciyan has pursued a Master’s Degree in Health Professions Education through the University of Illinois Chicago’s Department of Medical Education. His research interests now involve the role of simulation in education, faculty development, and the integration of novel online teaching techniques in cardiothoracic surgery. His efforts have resulted in the first online learning platform that currently is the national cardiothoracic surgical curriculum for all North American Trainees. Investigations into new novel teaching and assessments techniques form the bulk of his research interest although he is still actively involved in collaborative projects focused on lung cancer and pulmonary metastases.

Clinical Interests  

Dr. Vaporciyan has maintained an active role in all areas of thoracic surgical oncology. He is actively involved in the treatment of all malignancies and uses both open techniques and minimally invasive techniques for lung resection equally. While he has clinical activity in all diseases he has developed a specialized practice in the treatment of pulmonary metastases, complex pediatric thoracic malignancies, and in tumors involving cardiovascular structures. This latter area contributes nearly a third of Dr. Vaporciyan’s practice. Collaborating closely with surgeons in essentially all other surgical disciplines Dr. Vaporciyan has assisted with resections of tumors involving all vascular structures in the chest, abdomen, and extremities. For example, in combination with Dr Wood in Urology, Dr Vaporciyan has the world’s largest experience of inferior vena cava renal cell carcinoma tumor thrombi resections. Similarly, Dr. Vaporciyan spearheaded the incorporation of cardiopulmonary bypass in the resection of complex malignancies as well as the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in the treatment of post-operative respiratory failure.

Education & Training  

Degree-Granting Education

1989 University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, USA, MD, Medicine

1985 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA, BS, Cellular & Molecular Biology

Postgraduate Training

2006-2016 Masters of Health Professions Education, Health Professions Education, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL

1996-1998 Resident, Cardiothoracic Surgery, Cardiothoracic Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center/Texas Heart Institute, Houston

1993-1996 Resident, General Surgery, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston

1991-1993 Postdoctoral Fellowship, Department of Pathology, General Surgery, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor

1989-1991 Intern and Resident, General Surgery, General Surgery, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston

Board Certifications  

1999 Diplomat, American Board of Thoracic Surgery

1997 Diplomat, American Board of Surgery

Experience & Service  

Academic Appointments

Deputy Chair, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2009 - 2015

Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities

Program Director Thoracic Surgery Fellowship, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2004 - Present

Director, Cardiac & Vascular Surgical Oncology Program, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, 2002 - Present

Other Appointments/Responsibilities

Director, American Board of Thoracic Surgery, Chicago, IL, 2013 - 2021

Secretary/Treasurer, Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, Chicago, IL, 2013 - 2016

Member, ACGME Thoracic Surgery Milestone Group, Chicago, IL, 2011 - Present

Member, American College of Surgeons Patient Education Committee, Chicago, IL, 2010 - 2013

Executive Council Member, Joint Council of Thoracic Surgical Education, Chicago, IL, 2009 - 2017

Chair, Joint Council for Thoracic Surgical Education: Sub-Committee on Faculty Development, Chicago, IL, 2009 - 2017

Workforce Chair, Council on Education and Member Services Operating Board, Houston, TX, 2009 - 2017

Member, Workforce on Clinical Education, Houston, TX, 2009 - 2017

Institutional Committee Activities

Member, Procurement of Tissue - IRB Ad Hoc Committee, 2013 - Present

Member, CME Advisory Committee, 2008 - 2016

Member, Divisional Promotion/Tenure Committee, 2004 - 2015

Reviewer, Institutional Review Board, 2002 - 2004

Honors & Awards

2013 Regents Outstanding Teaching Award, University of Texas

2009 Best Doctors in America, Best Doctors

2006 The Chief Resident Teaching Award, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Department of Surgery

2004 Special Teaching Award, Selected by the Surgical Oncology Fellows , Department of Surgical Oncology, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

2003 Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, Baylor College of Medicine Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery

2002 The Chief Resident Teaching Award, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Department of Surgery

1996 Outstanding Surgical Resident Award, The University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center

Professional Memberships  

American Association for Thoracic Surgery

Member, 2006 - Present

Harris County Medical Society and Texas Medical Association

Member, 2006 - Present

General Thoracic Surgical Club

Member, 2005 - Present

Society of University Surgeons

Member, 2004 - Present

American College of Surgeons

Fellow, 2003 - Present

Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Chicago, IL

Member, 2003 - Present

Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, Chicago, IL

Member, 2003 - Present

Southern Thoracic Surgical Association

Member, 2001 - Present

International Association of Lung Cancer

Member, 1999 - Present

Cooley Hands

Member, 1996 - Present

Denton A. Cooley Cardiovascular Surgical Society

Member, 1996 - Present

Selected Publications  

Peer-Reviewed Articles

  1. Mitchell KG, Farooqi A, Ludmir EB, Corsini EM, Zhang J, Sepesi B, Vaporciyan AA, Swisher SG, Heymach JV, Zhang J, Gomez DR, Antonoff MB. Improved overall survival with comprehensive local consolidative therapy in synchronous oligometastatic non-small cell lung cancer. Clin Lung Cancer 21(1):37-46.e7, 2020. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31447303.
  2. Chen Y, Zhang R, Wang L, Correa AM, Pataer A, Xu Y, Zhang X, Ren C, Wu S, Meng QH, Fujimoto J, Jensen VB, Antonoff MB, Hofstetter WL, Mehran RJ, Pisimisis G, Rice DC, Sepesi B, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh GL, Swisher SG, Roth JA, Heymach JV, Fang B. Tumor characteristics associated with engraftment of patient-derived non-small cell lung cancer xenografts in immunocompromised mice. Cancer 125(21):3738-3748, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31287557.
  3. Mitchell KG, Ikoma N, Nelson DB, Maru DM, Erasmus JJ, Weston BR, Vaporciyan AA, Antonoff MB, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Roth JA, Swisher SG, Sepesi B, Walsh GL, Correa AM, Das P, Blum MA, Badgwell BD, Hofstetter WL. Mediastinal Nodal Involvement After Neoadjuvant Chemoradiation For Siewert II/III Adenocarcinoma. Ann Thorac Surg 108(3):845-851, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31102632.
  4. Nelson DB, Mehran RJ, Mitchell KG, Rajaram R, Correa AM, Bassett RL, Antonoff MB, Hofstetter WL, Roth JA, Sepesi B, Swisher SG, Walsh GL, Vaporciyan AA, Rice DC. Robotic Assisted Lobectomy For Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Comprehensive Institutional Experience. Ann Thorac Surg 108(2):370-376, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31004583.
  5. Vaporciyan AA. How to Give Effective Formative Feedback in Thoracic Surgery Education. Thorac Surg Clin 29(3):249-257, 2019. PMID: 31235293.
  6. Aloia L, Vaporciyan AA. E-Learning Trends and How to Apply Them to Thoracic Surgery Education. Thorac Surg Clin 29(3):285-290, 2019. PMID: 31235297.
  7. Nelson DB, Tam AL, Mitchell KG, Rice DC, Mehran RJ, Sepesi B, Antonoff MB, Vaporciyan AA, Hofstetter WL. Local Recurrence After Microwave Ablation of Lung Malignancies: A Systematic Review. Ann Thorac Surg 107(6):1876-1883, 2019. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30508527.
  8. Vaporciyan AA. "Crossing the quality chasm" in cardiothoracic surgical education. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 157(2):828, 2019. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30414771.
  9. Vaporciyan AA, Yang SC, Fann JI. The young surgeons' page. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 157(2):669-670, 2019. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30448165.
  10. Spicer JD, Shewale JB, Nelson DB, Mitchell KG, Bott MJ, Vallières E, Wilshire CL, Vaporciyan AA, Swisher SG, Jones DR, Darling GE, Sepesi B. Multimodality Therapy for N2 Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: An Evolving Paradigm. Ann Thorac Surg 107(1):277-284, 2019. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30227129.
  11. Nelson DB, Lapid DJ, Mitchell KG, Correa AM, Hofstetter WL, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Sepesi B, Walsh GL, Vaporciyan AA, Swisher SG, Roth JA, Antonoff MB. Perioperative Outcomes for Stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Differences between Men and Women. Ann Thorac Surg 106(5):1499-1503, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30118712.
  12. Van Haren RM, Mehran RJ, Mena GE, Correa AM, Antonoff MB, Baker CM, Woodard TC, Hofstetter WL, Roth JA, Sepesi B, Swisher SG, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh GL, Rice DC. Enhanced Recovery Decreases Pulmonary and Cardiac Complications Following Thoracotomy for Lung Cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 106(1):272-279, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29530770.
  13. Nelson DB, Dhupar R, Katkhuda R, Correa A, Goltsov A, Maru D, Sepesi B, Antonoff MB, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Vaporciyan AA, Davila M, Davila R, Betancourt S, Ajani J, Hofstetter WL. Outcomes after endoscopic mucosal resection or esophagectomy for submucosal esophageal adenocarcinoma. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 156(1):406-413.e3, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29605441.
  14. Sepesi B, Ye Y, Mitchell KG, Zhang L, Gu J, Ji L, Antonoff MB, Hofstetter WL, Rice DC, Mehran RJ, Walsh GL, Vaporciyan AA, Swisher SG, Roth JA, Wu X. Genetic variants in cytokine signaling pathways and clinical outcomes in early-stage lung cancer patients. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 155(6):2635-2645.e15, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29548588.
  15. Sepesi B, Nelson DB, Mitchell KG, Gibbons DL, Heymach JV, Vaporciyan AA, Swisher SG, Roszik J. Prognostic Value of PD-L1 mRNA Sequencing Expression Profile in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 105(6):1621-1626, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29510096.
  16. Parra ER, Villalobos P, Behrens C, Jiang M, Pataer A, Swisher SG, William WN, Zhang J, Lee J, Cascone T, Heymach JV, Forget MA, Haymaker C, Bernatchez C, Kalhor N, Weissferdt A, Moran C, Zhang J, Vaporciyan A, Gibbons DL, Sepesi B, Wistuba II. Effect of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on the immune microenvironment in non-small cell lung carcinomas as determined by multiplex immunofluorescence and image analysis approaches. J Immunother Cancer 6(1):48, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29871672.
  17. Nelson DB, Rice DC, Niu J, Atay SM, Vaporciyan AA, Antonoff MB, Hofstetter WL, Walsh GL, Swisher SG, Roth JA, Tsao AS, Gomez DR, Giordano SH, Mehran RJ, Sepesi B. Predictors of trimodality therapy and trends in therapy for malignant pleural mesothelioma. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 53(5):960-966, 2018. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29211849.
  18. Cascone T, Gold KA, Swisher SG, Liu DD, Fossella FV, Sepesi B, Pataer A, Weissferdt A, Kalhor N, Vaporciyan AA, Hofstetter WL, Wistuba II, Heymach JV, Kim ES, William WN. Induction Cisplatin Docetaxel Followed by Surgery and Erlotinib in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 105(2):418-424, 2018. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29217088.
  19. Ontiveros N, Eapen-John D, Osorio N, Song J, Li L, Sheshadri A, Tiang X, Ghosh N, Vaporciyan A, Correa A, Walsh G, Grosu HB, Ost DE. Predicting Lung Function Following Lobectomy: A New Method to Adjust for Inherent Selection Bias. Respiration 96(5):434-445, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30257257.
  20. Vaporciyan AA, Fikfak V, Lineberry MC, Park YS, Tekian A. Consensus-Derived Coronary Anastomotic Checklist Reveals Significant Variability Among Experts. Ann Thorac Surg 104(6):2087-2092, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29074155.
  21. Antonoff MB, Correa AM, Sepesi B, Nguyen QN, Walsh GL, Swisher SG, Vaporciyan AA, Mehran RJ, Hofstetter WL, Rice DC. Salvage pulmonary resection after stereotactic body radiotherapy: A feasible and safe option for local failure in selected patients. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 154(2):689-699, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28495066.
  22. Sepesi B, Cuentes EP, Canales JR, Behrens C, Correa A, Antonoff M, Gibbons DL, Heymach J, Hofstetter W, Mehran R, Rice DC, Roth J, Vaporciyan AA, Walsh G, Weissferdt A, Kalhor N, Moran C, Swisher SG, Wistuba I. Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes and Overall Survival in Surgically Resected Stage II and III Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 98(1):223, 2017. PMID: 28586974.
  23. Antonoff M, Ragalie W, Sepesi B, Roth J, Walsh G, Hofstetter W, Swisher SG, Rice DC, Vaporciyan AA, Mehran R. Patient-Reported Symptoms: Differences Between Men and Women Following Pulmonary Resection. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 98(1):240, 2017. PMID: 28587019.
  24. Shi Q, Wang XS, Vaporciyan AA, Rice DC, Popat KU, Cleeland CS. Patient-Reported Symptom Interference as a Measure of Postsurgery Functional Recovery in Lung Cancer. J Pain Symptom Manage 52(6):822-831, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27521528.
  25. Yang SC, Vaporciyan AA, Mark RJ, DaRosa DA, Stritter FT, Sullivan ME, Verrier ED. The Joint Council on Thoracic Surgery Education (JCTSE) "Educate the Educators" Faculty Development Course: Analysis of the First 5 Years. Ann Thorac Surg 102(6):2127-2132, 2016. PMID: 27847048.
  26. Antonoff MB, Verrier ED, Allen MS, Aloia L, Baker C, Fann JI, Iannettoni MD, Yang SC, Vaporciyan AA. Impact of Moodle-Based Online Curriculum on Thoracic Surgery In-Training Examination Scores. Ann Thorac Surg 102(4):1381-6, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27262911.
  27. Sepesi B, Schmidt HE, Lada M, Correa AM, Walsh GL, Mehran RJ, Rice DC, Roth JA, Vaporciyan AA, Ajani JA, Watson TJ, Swisher SG, Low DE, Hofstetter WL. Survival in Patients with Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Undergoing Trimodality Therapy Is Independent of Regional Lymph Node Location. Ann Thorac Surg 101(3):1075-81, 2016. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 26680311.
  28. Vaporciyan AA. Teaching and Learning Surgical Skill. Ann Thorac Surg 101(1):12-4, 2016. PMID: 26694260.
  29. Antonoff MB, Nguyen TC, Luc JGY, Fowler CS, Becker AA, Eisenberg SB, Wolf RK, Estera AL, Vaporciyan AA. A structured, debate-style cardiothoracic surgery journal club for trainee acquisition and application of seminal literature. MedEdPORTAL 12:10521, 2016.
  30. Rice D, Sepesi B, Heymach J, Swisher S, Vaporciyan A. SABR vs surgery for NSCLC in the media. Lancet Oncol 16(9):e422, 2015. PMID: 26370343.
  31. Ai D, Xu G, Feng L, Yu J, Banchs J, Vaporciyan AA, Cata JP, Outcomes Research Consortium. Dexmedetomidine Does Not Reduce Atrial Fibrillation After Lung Cancer Surgery. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth 29(2):396-401, 2015. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25440618.

Source:  https://faculty.mdanderson.org/profiles/ara_vaporciyan.html