Thamer R. Qaqish
Thamer R. Qaqish
Clinical Assistant Professor
Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Specialty/Research Focus
Surgery - Thoracic
Professional Summary:
General Thoracic Surgeon
Division Chief, Thoracic Surgery, Erie County Medical Center
Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery
Jacobs School of Medicine
University at Buffalo
Education and Training:
- BS, Physiology, Zoology, English, University of Toronto
- Fellowship, Cardiothoracic Surgery Fellowship, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
- Fellowship, Post-doctoral Research Fellowship, University of Toronto
- MD, Medicine, Ross University School of Medicine
- MS, Pulmonary Cell Biology, University of Toronto
- Residency, General Surgery Residency, Sinai Hospital of Baltimore
Employment:
- Division Chief, Thoracic Surgery, Surgery, Erie County Medical Society (2025-present)
- Faculty Coach, Jacobs School of Medicine, University at Buffalo (2024-present)
- Member, Erie County Medical Society, Public Health Committee (2024-present)
- Cancer Liason Physician, American College of Surgeons, ECMC (2023–2024)
Awards and Honors:
- Top Doctor of Western New York (2025)
- Top Doctor of Western New York (2024)
- Top Doctor of Western New York (2023)
- Resident of the Year (2018)
- Dept of Surgery, McMurrich Research Award (2017)
- Looking to the Future Scholarship (2017)
Grants and Sponsored Research:
- November 2024
Study of Fresh Blood Samples from Patients Newly Diagnosed with Cancer
THE MT GROUP, INC.
Role: Principal Investigator
Journal Articles:
- Galasso M, Feld JJ, Watanabe Y, Pipkin M, Summers C, Ali A, Qaqish R, Chen M, Ribeiro RVP, Ramadan K, Pires L, Bagnato VS, Kurachi C, Cherepanov V, Moonen G, Gazzalle A, Waddell TK, Liu M, Keshavjee S, Wilson BC, Humar A, Cypel M. (2019) Inactivating hepatitis C virus in donor lungs using light therapies during normothermic ex vivo lung perfusion. Nature communications (Jan), 10(1): 481. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-08261-z
- Ricardo Kalaf-Mussi , Daisuke Nakajima , Manyin Chen , Lucas Maahs , Rafael Coutinho , Robert Qaqish , Mingyao Liu , Shaf Keshavjee , Marcelo Cypel. (2024) Therapeutic Use of Carbon Monoxide in Ex-Vivo Lung Perfusion in Donor With Prolonged Cold Ischemia. Journal of Surgical Research (Sep), 301: 315-323. doi:10.1016/j.jss.2024.05.048
- Yu I, Tung K, Dugan R, Qaqish RT, Perry Y. (2023) Dedicated esophageal imaging may be unnecessary in marijuana-associated spontaneous pneumomediastinum: Findings from a retrospective cohort study. Frontiers in surgery (Jan), 10: 1043729.
- Qaqish TR, Chainani A, Batchelor E, Thanawala R, Jonsdottir H, Krishnan S, Gross T, Arshava EV. (2021) Spontaneous bilobar torsion managed with pneumopexy. JTCVS techniques (Jun), 7: 301-304. doi:10.1016/j.xjtc.2021.01.027
- Qaqish R, Watanabe Y, Hoetzenecker K, Yeung J, Chen M, Pierre A, Yasufuku K, Donahoe L, de Perrot M, Waddell T, Keshavjee S, Cypel M. (2021) Impact of donor time to cardiac arrest in lung donation after circulatory death. The Journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery (Apr), 161(4): 1546-1555.e1.
- Qaqish R, Watanabe Y, Galasso M, Summers C, Ali AA, Takahashi M, Gazzalle A, Liu M, Keshavjee S, Cypel M, Del Sorbo L. (2020) Veno-venous ECMO as a platform to evaluate lung lavage and surfactant replacement therapy in an animal model of severe ARDS. Intensive care medicine experimental (Oct), 8(1): 63. doi:10.1186/s40635-020-00352-w
- Watanabe Y, Galasso M, Watanabe T, Ali A, Qaqish R, Nakajima D, Taniguchi Y, Pipkin M, Caldarone L, Chen M, Kanou T, Summers C, Ramadan K, Zhang Y, Chan H, Waddell TK, Liu M, Keshavjee S, Del Sorbo L, Cypel M. (2019) Donor prone positioning protects lungs from injury during warm ischemia. American journal of transplantation : official journal of the American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (Oct), 19(10): 2746-2755.
- Perrins S, Cha A, Qaqish R, Plummer D, Hsu R, Dietzek AM. (2013) Clinical and anatomic outcomes of endovenous radiofrequency ablation performed on symptomatic small-diameter great saphenous veins. Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders (Jul), 1(3): 245-9.
- Svoboda S, Qaqish TR, Wilson A, Park H, Youssef Y. (1900) Robotic single-site cholecystectomy in the obese: outcomes from a single institution. Surgery for obesity and related diseases : official journal of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery (Jan), 11(4): 882-5.
Books and Book Chapters:
- Kelly, W., Yu, I., Katlic, M., Qaqish, T.R. (2023) In: Petrone, P., Brathwaite, C.E. (eds) Acute Care Surgery in Geriatric Patients. In: Thoracic Trauma in the Elderly. Springer, Cham.
- Zeller, M., Qaqish, T.R., Katlic, M. (2023) In: Petrone, P., Brathwaite, C.E. (eds) Acute Care Surgery in Geriatric Patients. In: Esophageal Injuries and Esophageal Emergencies in Geriatric Patients. Springer, Cham.
- Qaqish TR, Katlic MR. (2022) Achalasia of the Esophagus. In: Current Surgical Therapy 14th Edition.
- Qaqish TR, Cox S, Carr R, Katlic M. (2020) In: Treatment of Pleural Effusions with Nonintubated Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery. , 25-32.
- Qaqish TR, Katlic MR. (2020) Management of Disorders of Esophageal Motility. In: Current Surgical Therapy 13th Edition. , 44-52.
- Qaqish TR, Coleman J & Katlic MR. (2018) Thoracic Trauma in the Elderly. In: Geriatric Trauma and Acute Care Surgery. Springer Nature, 491.
- Qaqish TR, Katlic MR, Andrade-Alegre, R. & Fiorelli RA. (2017) Trauma traqueo bronquial (Tracheobronchial Trauma). In: Trauma, Emergency Surgery and Critical Care (3rd Edition), Panamerican Trauma Society/Sociedad Panamericana de Trauma.
Professional Memberships:
- Member; Erie County Medical Society (2024–present)
Presentations:
- "Lung Cancer Screening" UBMD Family Medicine Grand Rounds (2026)
- "Turning the Tide on a Deadly Cancer: What Every Clinician Needs to Know About Lung Cancer Screening" NY State Dept of Health Webinar. Moderated by the the NYS Commissioner of Health (2024)
Service Activities:
- Clinical instructor to 1st and 2nd year medical students in Foundations of Patient-Centered Care course; Clinical Instructor, Jacobs School of Medicine (2024–present)
- Mentor to 1st and 2nd year medical students. Monday PM and Tuesdays weekly; Faculty Coach, Jacobs School of Medicine (2024–present)
- Erie County Medical Society Public Health Committee; Board Member (2024–present)