Faculty Detail   
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 Education

Undergraduate  University of Rochester    1984  Bachelor of Arts 
Medical School  University of Rochester    1988  M.D. 
Residency  St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center     1990  General Surgery 
Residency  Cornell University Medical College    1991  Urology 
Residency  Mayo Clinic    1993  General Surgery 
Fellowship  Mayo Clinic    1996  Cardiothoracic Surgery 

Biographical Sketch 
Robert J. Cerfolio, M.D., M.B.A., FACS, FCCP, is currently a professor of surgery and chief of the Section of Thoracic Surgery at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he also holds the James H. Estes Family Lung Cancer Research Endowed Chair. He completed a residency in general surgery and a cardiothoracic fellowship, both at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
Dr. Cerfolio is an internationally recognized expert in thoracic surgery and has performed over 18,000 operations. He has received hundreds of national and international awards along with numerous teaching awards and honors. He has written over 180 original peer-reviewed articles and 75 book chapters. Dr. Cerfolio is the past president of the Southern Thoracic Surgical Association. He has performed more robotic thoracic operations (lobectomy, thymectomy and esophagectomy) than any other surgeon in the world. His technique has been adopted worldwide. More than 1,200 national and international visiting surgeons, anesthesiologists, and their teams have come to the UAB to learn Dr. Cerfolio’s technique. He has given over 300 visiting professor lectures in more than 26 different countries. He has recently written a book on the art of learning, teaching and balancing a life-work balance called “Super Performing at Work and Home – The Athleticism of Surgery and Life”, and he was an All-American baseball player in college.

Society Memberships
Organization Name Position Held Org Link
American Association for Thoracic Surgery  President 2012-2013   
American College of Chest Physicians  Member   
American College of Surgeons  Member   
American Medical Association  Member   
American Thoracic Society  Member   
Esophageal Club  Member   
European Society of Thoracic Surgeons  Member   
General Thoracic Surgical Club  Member   
International Association for the Study of Lunch Cancer   Member   
National Strength and Conditioning Association  Member   
First Prev   1 2 of  2  Next Last  

Research/Clinical Interest
Title
Description
Dr. Cerfolio’s clinical interests include robotic surgery, OR efficiency and finding better ways to teach surgery.

Selected Publications 
Cerfolio RJ, Tummala RP, Holman WL, Zorn GL, Kirklin JK, McGiffin DC, Naftel DC, Pacifico AD. A Prospective algorithm for the management of air leaks after pulmonary resection. Annals of Thoracic Surgery 1998; 66(5): 1726-31   
Cerfolio RJ, Bass C, Katholi CR, “Prospective Randomized Trial Compares Suction Versus Water Seal for Air Leaks” Annals of Thoracic Surgery 2001; 71: 1613 – 1617   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS, Bass CS, et al, “A Prospective Double-Blinded, Randomized Trial Evaluating the use of Preemptive Analgesia of the Skin Before Thoracotomy.” Annals of Thoracic Surgery 2003;76:1055 – 1058   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS, Bass CS, Alexander JR, Bartolucci AA. Fast Tracking After Ivor Lewis Esophagogastrectomy. Chest 2004; 126: 1187 – 1194   
Cerfolio RJ, “Why Become a Chest Surgeon” CTS-NET, March, 2005   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS, Ohja B et al. Improving the Inaccuracies of Clinical Staging of Patients with NSCLC: A Prospective Trial. Ann Thorac Surg. 2005;1207 – 1213   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS, Patel B and Bartolucci AA. Intercostal muscle flap reduces the pain of thoracotomy: a prospective randomized trial. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2005; 130:987-993   
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. Distribution and likelihood of lymph node metastasis based on the lobar location of non small cell lung cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 2006; 1969-1973.   
Bryant AS, Cerfolio RJ, Klemm K, Ojha B. Maximum standard uptake value of mediastinal lymph nodes on integrated FDG-PET-CT predicts pathology in patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 2006; 82:417-423.   
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. Survival and outcomes of pulmonary resection for non-small cell lung cancer in the elderly: A nested case-control study. Ann Thorac Surg 2006; 82:424-430.   
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. Ratio of the maximum standardized uptake value on FDG-PET of the mediastinal (N2) lymph nodes to the primary tumor may be a universal predictor of nodal malignancy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Ann Thorac Surg. 2007; 86:1826-1829.   
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. Surgical techniques and results for partial or circumferential sleeve resection of the pulmonary artery for patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Ann Thorac Surg 2007; 83:2201-2206.   
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. Results of a prospective algorithm to remove chest tubes after pulmonary resection with high output. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2008;135:269-73.   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS, Maniscalco, LM. A Non-divided intercostal muscle flap further reduces pain of thoracotomy: A prospective randomized trial. Ann Thorac Surg 2008; 85: 1901 – 1907    
Cerfolio RJ and Bryant AS. The benefits of continuous and digital air leak assessment after elective pulmonary resection: a prospective study. Ann Thorac Surg 2008; 82: 396-401.   
Cerfolio RJ, Minnich DJ, Bryant AS. General thoracic surgery is safe in patients taking clopidogrel (Plavix). J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2010; 140:970-6.   
Cerfolio RJ, Bryant AS. How to teach robotic pulmonary resection. Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2013 Spring;25(1):76-82   
Nasir, BS, Bryant AS, Minnich DJ, Wei B, Cerfolio R. Performing Robotic Lobectomy and Segmentectomy: Cost, Profitability and Outcomes. April, 2014.    
Cerfolio RJ. Total Portal Approach for Robotic Lobectomy. Ann Thor Surg Clinic. May, 2014, May 24 (2). P. 151 -156    
Wei B, Bryant AS, Minnich DJ, Cerfolio RJ. The Safety and Efficacy of Mediastinoscopy when Performed by General Thoracic Surgeons. Ann Thor Surg. June, 2014. 97 (6). P. 1878 – 1884.   
Wei B. Cerfolio RJ. Techniques and Results of Robotic Pulmonary Lobectomy Using Four Arms. Curr Surg Resp, Jan 2015. 3:1. P. 1-4   
Cerfolio RJ. The athleticism of surgery and life: super performing at work and at home… and beacons of light. Ann Thorac Surg. 2014 Nov;98(5):1529-35.   
Cerfolio, RJ, Steenwyk B, Watson C, Sparrow J, Belopolsky V, Townsley M, Lyerly R, Downing M, Bryant AS, Gurley W, Henling C, Crawford J, Gayeski T. Decreasing the Preincision Time for Pulmonary Lobectomy: The Process of Lean and Value Stream Mapping. Ann Thorac Surg. 2015 Nov.   
 

Keywords
Minimally invasive robotic lung cancer and esophogeal cancer surgery. intra-operative efficiency