Douglas B. CHEPEHA, MD, MSPH, FACS, FRCS(C) is a Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Toronto. He attended the University of Alberta, in his hometown for undergraduate, medical school and postgraduate preliminary general surgery. He graduated medical school in 1988 and during this time he rotated at Northwestern University with George Sisson and The University of Toronto with Patrick Gullane. While in a preliminary General Surgery residency, he was accepted into the Otolaryngology-Head-Neck Surgery Program at the University of British Columbia by PJ Doyle who was program director and chair. During his residency, free tissue transfer and multidisciplinary head and neck care were at the core of the curriculum. After residency, he pursued fellowship training in microsurgical reconstruction and surgical oncology with Ralph Gilbert at The University of Toronto. This was followed by a 2 year Advanced Training Council Surgical Oncology Fellowship directed by Ramon Esclamado and Gregory Wolf at the University of Michigan where he also obtained a Masters of Science in Public Health.
He stayed at the University of Michigan for 19 years where he obtained the rank of full professor with tenure were he directed of the surgical oncology fellowship and co-directed of the research committee and tissue core. He was part of a rich multidisciplinary environment that is directed toward solving questions though the conduct of innovative clinical trials relating to bioselection and individualized care.
He returned to Canada in 2014 to rejoin the faculty at the University of Toronto to pay forward the excellent opportunities his training had afforded him. He is a staff physician at the University Health Network and a member of the Surgical Oncology Department at the Princess Margaret Hospital.
His research interests relate to clinical and translational questions in head and neck oncology. He has particular interest in clinical trials, neck dissection, tumor response, molecular epidemiology, and reconstructive surgery. His most satisfying efforts are with his fellows who have developed a discipline for excellent care of each patient, a value he has passed down from his teachers.