Stephen D. Cassivi

MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS, FRCS

Consultant, Division of General Thoracic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
Professor of Surgery, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine

Education, Training and Positions

Dr. Stephen Cassivi is a consultant surgeon since 2002 in the Division of General Thoracic Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, where he is Professor of Surgery. Dr. Cassivi served as Surgical Director of the Lung Transplantation Program at Mayo Clinic from 2004-2012. From 2013-2019, Dr. Cassivi served as Vice Chair of the Department of Surgery. From 2017-2020, Dr. Cassivi served as Medical Director of the partnership between Mayo Clinic and Oxford University to provide evidence-based diagnostic and screening services in a new state-of-the-art medical facility in London, United Kingdom. Dr. Cassivi now leads a team working to harness machine learning and augmented human intelligence to provide data-driven innovations to clinical care at Mayo Clinic.

Dr. Cassivi studied Political Science and Biology before receiving his Doctorate in Medicine with Magna cum Laude honours from the University of Ottawa, Canada.  He completed his General Surgery residency at the University of Toronto, Canada and was certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (FRCSC). He also obtained certification from the American Board of Surgery. He completed a subspecialty fellowship in Cardiothoracic Surgery at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri and is further certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery. Dr. Cassivi has been honoured by the Royal College of Surgeons of England with a fellowship by election (FRCS).

Practice Areas

Dr. Cassivi continues also as a thoracic surgeon at Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minnesota) where his surgical practice spans the spectrum of Thoracic Surgery with a specific emphasis in minimally invasive surgery.  Dr. Cassivi has given scientific presentations both nationally and internationally on various subjects, including Surgical Quality of Care and Patient Safety, and Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery. He has authored and co-authored over 250 scientific papers.

Other Interests

Clinical Practice Interests

  • Minimally invasive surgery (pulmonary, esophageal, mediastinal)
  • eHealth platform innovations for clinical care
  • Lung cancer screening
  • Surgical treatment of myasthenia gravis
  • Post-operative esophageal function
  • Patient safety

Research Interests

  • Measures of quality in surgical outcomes
  • Patient safety
  • eHealth platforms
  • Brachytherapy for lung cancer
  • Functional outcomes after esophageal surgery

Research and Publications

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=cassivi%20s%5Bau%5D

Membership in Professional Societies

He has served on numerous committees in his profession including, among others, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS), the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), the European Society of Thoracic Surgeons (ESTS), the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), and the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT).

Why I am passionate about Drainology™

"In recognizing the unique opportunity to improve the care of our patients, I am very eager to contribute to the development of the emerging scientific discipline of Drainology."


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