Milwaukee, Feb. 28, 2023 – Matthew Cooper, MD, has been appointed Chief of the Division of Transplantation in the Department of Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), Director of the Joint Solid Organ Transplantation Program at Froedtert Health and Children’s Wisconsin, and the Mark B. Adams Chair in Transplant Surgery. Most recently, he served as Director of Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation and Medical Director of Transplant Quality at the Medstar Georgetown Transplant Institute. He was also a Professor of Surgery at Georgetown University School of Medicine.

In addition to his academic and clinical experience, Dr. Cooper’s research has focused on reducing the amount of medication necessary for successful transplant and finding interventions that repair injury to organs as a result of preservation. He has also been significantly involved in clinical trial management and facilitation, having served as the primary investigator on dozens of clinical trials. He has received over $7.5 million in NIH and pharma funding to support his work.

“After a comprehensive, international search, we’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Cooper to this important leadership role at the Medical College of Wisconsin,” said Joseph E. Kerschner, MD, MCW’s Provost and Executive Vice President, and The Julia A. Uihlein, MA, Dean of the School of Medicine. “His passion for increasing organ donation and saving lives through organ transplantation is unparalleled. I’m confident he will bring that same passion to MCW, continuing to grow our standing as a premier institution in this field.”

Dr. Cooper’s involvement in undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral education will benefit MCW’s academic community – he has mentored more than 40 undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, staff scientists, and research assistants. Additionally, he is well known nationally and internationally through his participation in numerous lectures, presentations, and scientific exhibits. He has also published hundreds of peer-reviewed manuscripts and abstracts, as well as 12 book chapters, in prominent journals such as the American Journal of Transplantation, Transplantation, New England Journal of Medicine and Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Dr. Cooper received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry from the University of Scranton in 1990, followed by his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1994. He completed a residency in general surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals from 1994-2000 and served as a fellow in transplant surgery at the Johns Hopkins Hospital from 2000-2002.

He is an active member of several national societies, including the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, National Kidney Foundation, Donate Life America, and The Transplantation Society. He is the immediate past president of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the organization contracted by the federal government charged with policy development and oversight for donation and solid organ transplantation in the U.S.