Renowned Transplant Hepatologist John Bucuvalas, MD, Joins Mount Sinai Health System
Renowned transplant hepatologist John Bucuvalas, MD, has been named Professor, Vice Chair of Faculty Affairs, and Chief of the Division of Hepatology in the Jack and Lucy Clark Department of Pediatrics at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital. He will also serve as Director of Solid Organ Transplant Outreach for the Recanati/Miller Transplantation Institute (RMTI) at Mount Sinai.
“We are ecstatic to have someone of Dr. Bucuvalas’s caliber and experience join our team,” says Sander S. Florman, MD, Director of the Recanati/Miller Transplantation Institute. “This is a game changer for pediatric liver transplantation at Mount Sinai and his presence will benefit all pediatric liver patients in the tristate area.”
As a pediatric transplant hepatologist, Dr. Bucuvalas has advanced and extensive training in pediatrics and gastroenterology as well as a comprehensive understanding of liver diseases. This combination of specialty training enables him to effectively evaluate the youngest liver transplant candidates and manage their care both before and after transplantation. In addition, he has expertise in managing issues like immunosuppression and transplant-associated infectious diseases.
Dr. Bucuvalas’s primary research efforts, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), focus on clinical and translational work to define predictors of operational tolerance, to predict risk for and determine the mechanism of long-term structural liver allograft injury, and to define strategies to mitigate non-adherence in transplant recipients, an effort in which he works in close collaboration with Eyal Shemesh, MD, Chief of the Division of Behavioral and Developmental Health in the Department of Pediatrics at Mount Sinai.
He has published broadly on outcomes following liver transplantation, non-adherence, late liver graft injury, immunosuppression withdrawal, and functional outcomes of liver transplantation. He worked with the National Institutes of Health to conduct a one-day symposium on improving long-term outcomes for pediatric liver transplant recipients and was lead author of the symposium report, which recommended specific research efforts to improve long-term well-being, health, and survival for pediatric liver transplant patients. As Chair of Studies of Pediatric Liver Transplantation (SPLIT), he helped to lead a restructuring of the SPLIT data registry and organizational structure to meet the goals aligned in the NIH symposium report.
“I am struck by the collaborative, forward-thinking and innovative culture both within RMTI and the Department of Pediatrics. The commitment to doing their best for patients and families is evident throughout the organization,” says Dr. Bucuvalas. “That environment, together with a rich history, makes Mount Sinai very special.”
Dr. Bucuvalas earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed his residency, including a year as Chief Resident, in Pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital and pursued further advanced training in gastroenterology during his fellowship at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Prior to joining Mount Sinai, he was Professor of Pediatrics and Director of the Integrated Solid Organ Transplant Program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
He is board certified in pediatric gastroenterology with a certificate of added qualification in transplant hepatology. He is a member of the American Pediatric Society and a fellow of the American Association for the study of Liver Disease.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.
Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 11 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2024-2025.
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