Since its inception, the Duke Department of Surgery has placed research at the core of its mission of advancing patient care, surgical outcomes, and medical knowledge.
Leaders in Laboratory and Clinical Investigation
The Duke Department of Surgery brings pioneering research discoveries from the lab to clinical practice through the pursuit of the latest advances in basic and translational research.
Basic and Translational Research
Unique among surgical departments, Duke Surgery is home to an active Division of Surgical Sciences made up exclusively of individuals engaged in basic and translational science.
Clinical Research
Faculty members in the Department of Surgery conduct hundreds of clinical trials each year. As part of a major academic medical center, Duke Surgery leverages clinical and research resources that allow patients to access cutting-edge treatments and participate in a broad spectrum of clinical trials.
Health Services Research
Coordinated under the auspices of Duke Surgery’s Collaborative for Health Services Research, Department of Surgery researchers are engaged in a range of studies seeking to improve healthcare quality and optimize care delivery.
Leadership and Administration
Matthew Hartwig, MD, MHS, is a Professor of Surgery in the Duke Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery. He was appointed Vice Chair for Clinical Research and Data Science in 2026, serving as Duke Surgery's senior strategic and operational leader for clinical research and operations through data science and clinical research infrastructure.
Dr. Hartwig has served as Director of the Surgery Office of Clinical Research (SOCR) since 2021. He is Surgical Director of the Duke Lung Transplant Program and the Esophageal Center at Duke, and he directs the Duke Ex Vivo Organ Laboratory (DEVOL). He leads a successful program of clinical, basic, and translational research in thoracic surgery and lung transplantation. Dr. Hartwig has over 150 peer-reviewed publications, and is currently principal investigator on numerous funded studies, including industry-sponsored multi-center clinical trials and NIH-supported projects.
Dr. Hartwig earned his MD from Duke University in 2001 and went on to complete his surgical residency at Duke prior to joining the faculty in 2011. In 2024, he was also appointed Professor of Biomedical Engineering in the Pratt School of engineering.
R. Keith Reeves, PhD, is a Professor in Surgery in the Division of Surgical Sciences. He was appointed Vice Chair for Basic and Translational Research in 2026, serving as Duke Surgery's senior strategic and operational leader overseeing the conduct of basic and translational research performed across the department.
He is a Director at the Duke Center for Human Systems Immunology (CHSI), Director of the Duke Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) Development Core, and co-Director of the NIH Center of Excellence for Multiscale Immune Systems Modeling. With over 100 publications in the field and over 60 as senior author, Dr. Reeves's group focuses on cutting-edge approaches to harness innate immunity in the context of vaccines and on understanding the immune consequences of aging. He also holds a secondary appointment as a Professor of Pathology, and is a member of the Duke Human Vaccine Institute (DHVI) and the Duke Cancer Institute (DCI).
Dr. Reeves obtained his PhD at the University of Alabama-Birmingham studying dendritic cell biology in lentivirus infections, and completed his postdoctoral training in lentivirus vaccinology, natural killer cells, and innate immunity at the New England Primate Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard Medical School.
He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of the journal AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses and is the immediate past chair of the NIH HIV Immunopathogenesis and Vaccine Development study section.
Jennifer Janes is the Administrative Director of Research for the Duke Department of Surgery. In this role, she provides strategic and operational leadership for the department's research enterprise, including clinical research administration, core facilities, faculty research support, and grant management. Since joining Duke Surgery in 2014, Jennifer founded the Substrate Services Core Research Support (SSCRS), a centralized platform designed to expand core biobanking access across the department and the Duke School of Medicine. She subsequently led the development of scalable infrastructure and integrated research support services that have helped position the department among the top NIH-funded surgery programs in the country.
Prior to her work at Duke, Jennifer served as the biorepository manager at the Emory University Transplant Center and was a research scientist at the University of Florida.
Jennifer earned her Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Cell Science and her Master of Science in Veterinary Medical Sciences from the University of Florida. She also holds a Master of Business Administration from North Carolina State University.
Lauren G. Anderson, PhD, has served as Director of Research Development for the Department of Surgery since 2017, after first joining the department as a Research Development Project Manager in 2015. Her primary function is providing strategic guidance for faculty and department leadership in the development of research proposals and managing complex projects. This includes fostering new research initiatives, development of team and individual grant proposals, and managing a team of proposal developers and project managers.
Dr. Anderson came to Duke in 2010 as a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Neurology before transitioning into research development in 2013 in the Office of Research Development for the Duke University School of Medicine . She is an International Coaching Federation (ICF)-certified Professional Coach, holds a BA in Neuroscience from The Johns Hopkins University and a PhD in Neurobiology from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Grants and Contracts
Melissa Murad, Assistant Director of Research
melissa.trofi@duke.edu
Clinical Research
Sarah Casalinova, Research Practice Manager
sarah.casalinova@duke.edu
Animal Surgical Training & Research
Kyha Williams, DVM, DACLAM, Assistant Professor in Surgery
kyha.williams@duke.edu
Biobanking
Marybeth Joshi, MPH, Director or Clinical Residency Education Training and Operations
marybeth.joshi@duke.edu
Communications Support
Joshua Perin, PhD, Director of Communications
joshua.perin@duke.edu