Eric R Frykberg MD Lecture

Herbert Chen, M.D. Chair, Department of Surgery University of Alabama at Birmingham and Fay Fletcher Kerner Endowed Chair.

Herbert Chen, M.D., is the chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), the Surgeon-in-Chief of UAB Hospital and Health System, and the senior associate dean for Academic Affairs in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine. He is a Surgery, Pediatrics, and Biomedical Engineering professor, and holds the Fay Fletcher Kerner Endowed Chair.

His clinical interests include endocrine surgery and he is a pioneer in radio-guided parathyroid surgery.  Chen’s clinical interests include endocrine and neuroendocrine disease with a focus on minimally invasive endocrine surgery. He has one of the largest experiences with radioguided parathyroidectomy (MIRP), and performs high volume thyroid and adrenal surgery. He is the American Cancer Society MEN2 Thyroid Cancer Professor. Chen's lab studies thyroid and neuroendocrine cancers and has received over $36 million in extramural funding. Dr. Chen’s laboratory focuses on the role of cellular signaling pathways in the differentiation and growth of neuroendocrine (NE) tumors including carcinoid, pancreatic islet cell, pheochromocytoma, and medullary thyroid cancer.

He is the Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Surgery. He has held several leadership positions in major academic societies including President of the Society of Asian Academic Surgeons Foundation, President of the Association for Academic Surgery, President of the Society of Clinical Surgery, President of the American Association of Endocrine Surgeons (AAES). President of Surgical Biology Club II, and President of the AAES Foundation.

He has mentored over 130 faculty, post­doctoral fellows, residents, medical students, and undergraduates in his lab. He has published over 670 original research and review articles and has edited 28 textbooks. He is well-known for his passion for teaching and mentoring the next generation of surgical leaders. Dr. Chen has also been recognized as a champion of diversity, equity, and inclusion.