Category: New Faculty

Please join us in welcoming George Tolis, Jr., MD, as a new faculty member in the Department of Surgery.

George Tolis, Jr., MD
Associate Surgeon, Division of Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery
Section Chief, Coronary Surgery and General Cardiac Surgery
Network Director, Cardiac Surgery
Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Tolis received a Bachelor of Science in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale College and a Master of Science in the same focus from Yale University. He received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed general surgery training at Massachusetts General Hospital, a fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at the Yale/New Haven Hospital and a fellowship in aortic surgery at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. He is board certified in general and thoracic surgery.

Dr. Tolis is a member of various professional organizations, including the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), the American College of Surgeons (ACS), the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery (EACTS) and the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS).

Before coming to the Brigham, Dr. Tolis was a visiting surgeon and the quality director for the Division of Cardiac Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital. He has worked as a surgeon in other medical institutions, including Lenox Hill Hospital and St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, where he served as the chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. At the Brigham, Dr. Tolis is being recruited as the section chief for Coronary Surgery and General Cardiac Surgery, as well as the network director for Cardiac Surgery. In this role, he will work on maintaining and enhancing the cardiac surgery operations at Cape Cod Hospital, as well as developing new relationships with regional institutions under the direction of Dr. Raphael Bueno, the chief of Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery.

Dr. Tolis’ clinical interests include liberal use of multiple arterial grafting  in coronary bypass surgery, use of extensive coronary endarterectomy to provide operative solutions for patients who have been previously deemed inoperable, surgery for native and prosthetic valve bacterial endocarditis and open surgery to address failure of percutaneous devices. His research interests include investigation of factors affecting quality reporting of various cardiac surgical programs, which are not captured through standard risk adjustment models, and identification of optimal ways to enhance the operative surgical education of cardiothoracic surgery trainees.

Please join us in welcoming Alexander P. Cole, MD, as a new faculty member in the Department of Surgery.

Alexander P. Cole, MD
Associate Surgeon, Division of Urology

Dr. Cole received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Harvard College and his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed general surgery training and a urology residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a fellowship in health services research at the Brigham/Harvard University/Center for Surgery and Public Health. Following residency, he completed a clinical fellowship in urologic oncology and image-guided therapeutics, which incorporated roles as a urologic oncology fellow at the Brigham/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and a six-month rotation as a senior clinical fellow with the focal therapy team at the University College London Hospitals Trust.

Dr. Cole is a member of various professional organizations, including the American Urological Association (AUA), the Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).

Dr. Cole’s research interests focus on the interplay between health systems and health care delivery models, with a particular focus on underserved minority populations. His clinical focus is on the treatment of genitourinary malignancies, with a focus on diagnostics and image-guided therapeutics.

Please join us in welcoming Christopher Dwyer, MD, FRCSC, as a new faculty member in the Department of Surgery.

Christopher Dwyer, MD, FRCSC
Associate Surgeon, Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery

Dr. Dwyer received his medical degree from the Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada. He also completed his BSc degree at Memorial University, majoring in both chemistry and biochemistry. He thereafter completed his residency training in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Western University’s Schulich School of Dentistry and Medicine in Ontario, Canada. He then pursued subspecialty fellowship training in laryngology and care of the professional voice at UC San Francisco. He is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

Dr. Dwyer specializes in the medical and surgical care of voice, airway and swallowing pathologies. He is a strong advocate for offering a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to patient care, aiming to optimize outcomes and likelihood of sustainable, long-term success. His research interests include management and prevention of airway stenosis, balancing functional and oncologic outcomes of early glottic carcinoma, and pursuing future endeavors in treatment of chronic cough. He is passionate about medical and surgical education, with a special interest in teaching residents and medical students. Working alongside medical trainees has been a significant factor for his decision to pursue a career in academic medicine.