Surgery News & Notes

Please join us in welcoming Desiree A. Steimer, MD, as a new faculty member in the Department of Surgery.

Desiree A. Steimer, MD
Associate Surgeon, Division of Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery

Dr. Steimer is a graduate of Rhodes College and received her medical degree from the University of Kentucky. She completed surgical residency at Baylor University and is board certified in general surgery. Her thoracic training includes a cardiothoracic surgical residency and a fellowship in foregut and general thoracic surgery; both programs were completed at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

She has an interest in minimally invasive thoracic surgery and is a recipient of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) Foundation Thoracic Surgical Robotics Fellowship. She is a member of various professional societies, including Women in Thoracic Surgery (WTS), the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS).

Dr. Steimer’s clinical interest is thoracic oncology, including lung cancer, esophageal cancer, thymic malignancies and mesothelioma. Her research will focus on improving patient education for pre-surgical and postoperative care.

Please join us in welcoming Paula A. Ugalde Figueroa, MD, as a new faculty member in the Department of Surgery.

Paula A. Ugalde Figueroa, MD
Associate Surgeon, Division of Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery

Dr. Ugalde received her medical degree from the Federal University of Bahia Medical School in Salvador, Brazil, where she also completed a master’s degree and a postdoctoral research fellowship in lung volume reduction surgery. She completed her general surgery residency at the Santo Antônio Hospital in Salvador, Brazil and a thoracic surgery residency at the Pavilhão Pereira Filho Santa Casa da Misericórdia Hospital Department of Pulmonary Disease in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Subsequently, Dr. Ugalde completed a 2-year clinical fellowship in thoracic surgery at the Hôpital Laval Department of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery in Quebec, Canada and a minimally invasive thoracic surgery fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Esophageal and Lung Surgery Institute.

She is a member of the Board of Directors and chair of the Database Committee of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), as well as a member of the American Association of Thoracic Surgery (AATS), the Society of Thoracic Surgery (STS) and Women in Thoracic Surgery (WTS), among other institutions. Previously, Dr. Ugalde worked as the director of the Thoracic Oncology Research Program at the University Institute of Cardiology and Pulmonology of Quebec of the Université Laval, where she was also a clinical professor in the Department of Surgery.

Dr. Ugalde’s clinical and research interests include innovation in minimally invasive lung surgery. She has the largest prospective database on uniportal surgery and has published extensively on using this technique for complex procedures. She is also dedicated to education and organizing several meetings and training programs, nationally and internationally.