UAMS’ V. Suzanne Klimberg, M.D., Named Treasurer of Southern Surgical Association

By Ben Boulden

Klimberg is director of the Division of Breast and Surgical Oncology and professor of surgery and pathology in the UAMS College of Medicine. She holds the Muriel Balsam Kohn Chair in Breast Surgical Oncology.

Her research interests include the use of radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of breast cancer; axillary reverse mapping for the prevention of the swelling known as lymphedema that often follows breast cancer surgery; the role of glutamine in the prevention of breast cancer; and the use of tears as a medium for breast cancer screening.

She is past president of the American Society of Breast Surgeons, the Society of Surgical Oncology and the Association of Academic Surgery. She is senior director of the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Surgery.

Klimberg also is founding director of the Breast Cancer Challenge, a multi-state, collaborative education and research conference held each July in Branson, Missouri. She has more than 200 publications in her name and serves on the editorial boards for the Annals of Surgery, Journal of Surgery and Breast Disease Quarterly. She serves as deputy editor for the Annals of Surgical Oncology and breast editor for the Journal of Surgical Oncology.

The Breast Cancer Program at UAMS is the only program in the state accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC). The NAPBC, a program of the American College of Surgeons, represents a consortium of national professional organizations dedicated to improving of the quality of care and monitoring of outcomes for patients with diseases of the breast.

Founded in 1887, the Southern Surgical Association is the second oldest organization of its kind in the United States. It is a select and prestigious fellowship of more than 700 professionals actively practicing surgery of one of its subspecialties.

UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a northwest Arkansas regional campus; a statewide network of regional centers; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute, the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging and the Translational Research Institute. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,021 students, 789 medical residents and two dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including about 1,000 physicians and other professionals who provide care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS regional centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.