MUSC Health Transplant Clinic at Rutledge Tower
135 Rutledge Ave, 1st Floor, 9th Floor,Charleston, SC 29425
For more than 25 years, MUSC Health has served as the only solid organ transplant center in South Carolina. Each year, our talented surgical team performs hundreds of organ transplants to increase patients' longevity and quality of life.
The Transplant Center is proud to serve both adult and pediatric patients. We offer complete care for patients undergoing many types of solid organ transplant, including heart, lung, kidney, liver, and pancreas.
Meet our staff
John W McGillicuddy, MD
Transplant SurgeryAbout
John W. McGillicuddy, M.D. FACS, received his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, graduating cum laude and inducted into Phi Beta Kappa for outstanding academic achievement.Dr. McGillicuddy completed medical school at the University of Michigan where he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha for outstanding academic achievement. He completed his general surgery residency and Extra-coporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) fellowship and critical care fellowships at the University of Michigan before completing an abdominal transplant surgery fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. McGillicuddy specializes in the management of end-stage liver and end-stage renal disease, including the evaluation and selection of patients for liver or kidney transplantation. He has a particular interest in the management and surgical treatment of benign and malignant liver lesions including hepatocellular carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma, metastatic liver tumors, hepatic adenoma, focal nodular hyperplasia, hepatic hemangioma, and hepatic cysts.Dr. McGillicuddy also performs a wide variety of general surgical procedures in patients with end-stage organ disease.Dr. McGillicuddy's research interest lies in the use of mobile health technology (mHealth) to improve the health and well being of transplant patients.
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Santosh Nagaraju, MD
Transplant SurgeryAbout
Dr. Santosh Nagaraju, MD, is a board-certified surgeon specializing in abdominal organ transplant surgeon. Dr. Nagaraju earned his medical degree in India and completed a general surgery residency at Grant Medical College, Mumbai, in India. He pursued organ transplant training as a visiting research scholar at the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute in Pittsburgh. He then completed a general surgery residency and a multi-organ transplant surgery fellowship at Indiana University.
Dr. Nagaraju is certified in kidney, liver, pancreas and intestine transplant by the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. He also performs minimally invasive donor surgery for living donor kidney transplants. Dr. Nagaraju is board certified in general surgery by the American Board of Surgery and performs a spectrum of general surgery procedures including hernia, gall bladder, hepatobiliary and dialysis access procedures. He enjoys working with trainees including medical students, residents and fellows. He is passionate about improving learning experience for trainees.
Dr. Nagaraju believes in empowering and educating patients to make the best possible decisions for their healthcare needs. He encourages a team approach that is patient centered and inclusive of providers and patient families to determine care plans that reflect patient autonomy. He believes patients are part of the extended "transplant family" and forges long lasting bonds with patients long after their surgery.
Outside of work, Dr. Nagaraju enjoys spending time with his daughter, reading and cycling.
Dr. Nagaraju is certified in kidney, liver, pancreas and intestine transplant by the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. He also performs minimally invasive donor surgery for living donor kidney transplants. Dr. Nagaraju is board certified in general surgery by the American Board of Surgery and performs a spectrum of general surgery procedures including hernia, gall bladder, hepatobiliary and dialysis access procedures. He enjoys working with trainees including medical students, residents and fellows. He is passionate about improving learning experience for trainees.
Dr. Nagaraju believes in empowering and educating patients to make the best possible decisions for their healthcare needs. He encourages a team approach that is patient centered and inclusive of providers and patient families to determine care plans that reflect patient autonomy. He believes patients are part of the extended "transplant family" and forges long lasting bonds with patients long after their surgery.
Outside of work, Dr. Nagaraju enjoys spending time with his daughter, reading and cycling.
This provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Joseph Scalea, MD
Transplant SurgeryAbout
Dr. Scalea is a board-certified surgeon specializing in kidney, pancreas, liver, and islet cell transplantation. Dr. Scalea's patient care philosophy is to treat his patients with a meticulous focus on excellence and compassionate care. His clinical area of expertise is in abdominal organ transplantation, with a special interest in kidney, pancreas, and islet cell transplantation. Dr. Scalea has achieved outstanding results in his simultaneous kidney and pancreas (SPK) transplant recipients. At MUSC Health, he is the Surgical Director of the Kidney Transplant Program and the Director of Hepatology, Nephrology, and Transplant ICCE Quality and Innovation.
Dr. Scalea's research interests focus on improving outcomes and access to care for patients needing life-saving transplantation and researching strategies to achieve immune tolerance in allogeneic solid organ transplantation. He received international notoriety in 2019 for pioneering drones for organ transplants. As the inaugural Vice Chair of Surgery for Innovation, Dr. Scalea will expand his experience in clinical medicine, academic leadership, commercialization, and innovation to help translate innovative ideas from the laboratory to industry.
Dr. Scalea received his medical degree and surgical training from the University of Maryland and completed his transplant fellowship at the University of Wisconsin and his post-doctoral fellowship at the Harvard Medical School, Transplantation Biology Research Center.
When not in the clinic or laboratory, Dr. Scalea enjoys painting and performing music. His artworks are currently on display in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
Dr. Scalea's research interests focus on improving outcomes and access to care for patients needing life-saving transplantation and researching strategies to achieve immune tolerance in allogeneic solid organ transplantation. He received international notoriety in 2019 for pioneering drones for organ transplants. As the inaugural Vice Chair of Surgery for Innovation, Dr. Scalea will expand his experience in clinical medicine, academic leadership, commercialization, and innovation to help translate innovative ideas from the laboratory to industry.
Dr. Scalea received his medical degree and surgical training from the University of Maryland and completed his transplant fellowship at the University of Wisconsin and his post-doctoral fellowship at the Harvard Medical School, Transplantation Biology Research Center.
When not in the clinic or laboratory, Dr. Scalea enjoys painting and performing music. His artworks are currently on display in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
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Call Us to Schedule
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Kamal Abdelkader, MD, PhD, FISN
Transplant NephrologyThis provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Kannan Samy, MD
General Surgery, Transplant Surgery, Gastrointestinal (GI) Surgery, Liver TransplantThis provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Diego di Sabato, MD
Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, Transplant Surgery, Liver TransplantAbout
Diego di Sabato, M.D., serves as the Surgical Director of Liver Transplantation for both adult and pediatric patients at MUSC, a position that allows him to make a significant impact on patient care. He is developing a robust Living Donor Liver Transplant (LDLT) program and works with multidisciplinary teams including MUSC Health's Transplant Oncology practice, the Pediatric Liver Transplant Program, and other LDLT indications.
Dr. di Sabato joined MUSC from the University of Chicago School of Medicine, where, since 2019, he served as the co-director of the Living Donor Liver Transplant (LDLT) Program. During his tenure at the University of Chicago School of Medicine, he relaunched the LDLT program after a 5-year hiatus, building it into one of the busiest LDLT programs in the region, with surgical outcomes that have met or exceeded national standards. As a pediatric transplant surgeon, he integrated live donor liver transplants and established a multidisciplinary approach to pediatric liver diseases, with excellent outcomes considering the complex population. The impact of the LDLT program now contributes to more than half of the pediatric liver transplants, including for acute liver failure in children, as well as an essential component of their novel Transplant Oncology program.
Dr. di Sabato is exceedingly well trained, having completed two fellowships in Transplantation at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He was also a visiting surgeon at the world's busiest living donor liver transplant program, Asan Medical Center, in Seoul, South Korea, the first center in the world to perform living donor liver transplantation.
Along with his dedication to his clinical work, Dr. di Sabato is passionate about continued research to improve care for transplant patients. Currently, he is investigating liver recovery options in order to increase the number of viable organs available for patients needing a liver transplant.
Dr. di Sabato joined MUSC from the University of Chicago School of Medicine, where, since 2019, he served as the co-director of the Living Donor Liver Transplant (LDLT) Program. During his tenure at the University of Chicago School of Medicine, he relaunched the LDLT program after a 5-year hiatus, building it into one of the busiest LDLT programs in the region, with surgical outcomes that have met or exceeded national standards. As a pediatric transplant surgeon, he integrated live donor liver transplants and established a multidisciplinary approach to pediatric liver diseases, with excellent outcomes considering the complex population. The impact of the LDLT program now contributes to more than half of the pediatric liver transplants, including for acute liver failure in children, as well as an essential component of their novel Transplant Oncology program.
Dr. di Sabato is exceedingly well trained, having completed two fellowships in Transplantation at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He was also a visiting surgeon at the world's busiest living donor liver transplant program, Asan Medical Center, in Seoul, South Korea, the first center in the world to perform living donor liver transplantation.
Along with his dedication to his clinical work, Dr. di Sabato is passionate about continued research to improve care for transplant patients. Currently, he is investigating liver recovery options in order to increase the number of viable organs available for patients needing a liver transplant.
This provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Prabhakar K Baliga, MD
Transplant SurgeryAbout
Prabhakar Baliga, M.D. FACS is a transplant surgeon and chair of the MUSC Department of Surgery, where he leads a diverse range of programs and services spanning nine clinical divisions, in addition to the Department's research and education divisions. Dr. Baliga's philosophy is to treat his patients with a primary focus on excellence and compassionate care. His clinical focus is in abdominal organ transplant with a special interest in kidney, liver and pancreas transplantation. He treats patients who are experiencing kidney failure, particularly with polycystic kidney disease; liver failure, liver cancer and patients who have issues with their bile duct, a series of thin tubes that go from the liver to the small intestine. ,He has served many leadership positions that have positively impacted the growth and expertise of the MUSC Health transplant program, the only solid organ transplant center in South Carolina. Prior to assuming the role of Department Chair, Dr. Baliga was named MUSC's ICCE Leader for Transplant, Nephrology & Hepatology and served on the Board of Life Point, an organ procurement agency. He has also served on the board for the United Network for Organ Sharing and the board of directors for the South Carolina chapter of the National Kidney Foundation. He is on the leadership of the state-wide SC surgical quality collaborative that is focused on improving care of surgical patients across SC. He currently serves on the American College of Surgeons Board of Governors as the Surgical Specialty Society Governor from the Southern Surgical Association.Dr. Baliga was awarded his medical degree by Madras Medical College in India. He completed his surgical residency at Tulane University and his transplant fellowship at the University of Michigan.
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Steve Hanish, MD, FACS
Liver Cancer, Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, Transplant Surgery, Liver TransplantAbout
Steven I. Hanish, M.D., is a Professor in the Department of Surgery at MUSC, as well as the Division Chief of Transplant Surgery. He specializes in complex surgeries of the liver and bile duct as well as Living Donor Liver Transplant.
Dr. Hanish earned his medical degree at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed a residency in general surgery at Duke University School of Medicine and received advanced training in transplant surgery through a fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics. He performed additional training at Asan Medical Center in Seoul, South Korea, learning the techniques of performing living-donor liver transplantation.
Certified by the American Board of Surgery, Dr. Hanish was recruited to the University of Maryland School of Medicine in 2013, where, as the director of hepatobiliary surgery, he helped Maryland's liver transplant program become the third largest in the United States. He joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 2018 and initiated their Living Donor Liver Program. HIs time at UTSW showed programmatic growth with some of the best outcomes in liver transplantation as well as one of the shortest lengths of stays following transplant.
His clinical focus is on expanding the availability of liver transplant - from both living and deceased donors - to patients who weren't previously eligible for transplant due to their age, obesity, tumor size, or insufficient sobriety time.
A specialist in the full spectrum of hepatobiliary surgery, Dr. Hanish is also highly experienced in repairing injuries to the bile duct, such as those that can occur during gall bladder surgery, as well as complex liver surgery.
His research endeavors focus on liver failure and liver transplant. In addition, he serves on the editorial board of Transplantation Reviews and is an ad hoc reviewer for Journal of Surgical Research, Journal of Surgical Oncology, and Liver Transplantation.
Dr. Hanish earned his medical degree at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed a residency in general surgery at Duke University School of Medicine and received advanced training in transplant surgery through a fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics. He performed additional training at Asan Medical Center in Seoul, South Korea, learning the techniques of performing living-donor liver transplantation.
Certified by the American Board of Surgery, Dr. Hanish was recruited to the University of Maryland School of Medicine in 2013, where, as the director of hepatobiliary surgery, he helped Maryland's liver transplant program become the third largest in the United States. He joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 2018 and initiated their Living Donor Liver Program. HIs time at UTSW showed programmatic growth with some of the best outcomes in liver transplantation as well as one of the shortest lengths of stays following transplant.
His clinical focus is on expanding the availability of liver transplant - from both living and deceased donors - to patients who weren't previously eligible for transplant due to their age, obesity, tumor size, or insufficient sobriety time.
A specialist in the full spectrum of hepatobiliary surgery, Dr. Hanish is also highly experienced in repairing injuries to the bile duct, such as those that can occur during gall bladder surgery, as well as complex liver surgery.
His research endeavors focus on liver failure and liver transplant. In addition, he serves on the editorial board of Transplantation Reviews and is an ad hoc reviewer for Journal of Surgical Research, Journal of Surgical Oncology, and Liver Transplantation.
This provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Tara Barry, MD
Transplant Surgery, Liver Transplant, General SurgeryAbout
Dr. Tara Barry is double-board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care; she specializes in liver, kidney, and pancreas transplantation. She is also certified in robotic surgery and performs living donor nephrectomies as well as robotic general surgery procedures. She has dedicated her career to caring for patients with advanced organ disease and is passionate about helping people live longer, healthier lives through transplantation. Dr. Barry trained for more than ten years to provide expert, compassionate care. She earned her medical degree from the University of Maryland and completed her general surgery residency at the University of South Florida, where she also spent two years in clinical research that led to several publications. During residency, she also completed a fellowship in surgical critical care and became certified in robotic surgery. She went on to advanced training in abdominal transplant surgery at Tampa General Hospital, one of the busiest transplant centers in the nation. Her clinical interests include improving outcomes for patients before and after transplant, caring for complex liver patients in the intensive care unit, and developing specialized transplant care programs. She also performs robotic general surgery procedures, including gallbladder removal, hernia repair, and dialysis access surgeries. Dr. Barry believes in caring for the whole patient and their family, not just performing surgery. She works closely with patients to guide them through every step of the transplant process, from evaluation and expectations for surgery to the operation itself and long-term follow-up. She is also active in community outreach and patient education, raising awareness about organ donation and improving access to transplant services. Her goal is to provide excellent care while helping build one of the best transplant programs in the country here at MUSC.
This provider is not accepting new patients at this time
Dirk van der Windt, MD, PhD
Transplant Surgery, Liver TransplantAbout
Dirk J. van der Windt, M.D., Ph.D. is a fellowship-trained multi-organ transplant surgeon. Dr. van der Windt's clinical interests are in liver, kidney and pancreas transplantation, living kidney donation surgery, and dialysis access surgery. Although organ transplant often happens in a complex medical situation, his aim is always to make things understandable for patients and their loved ones. Dr. van der Windt believes organ transplantation is the most meaningful area of medicine to work in as it provides cure for organ failure at high and durable rates. He completed his Abdominal Transplant and Hepatobiliary Surgery Fellowship at the University of Michigan. Before that, he received his medical degree from Erasmus University in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and completed residency in General Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh.
In addition to his clinical work, Dr. van der Windt believes that the shortage of donor organs will always fuel innovative research in new ways to increase the number of transplants. He pursued advanced training in transplantation biology and received his Ph.D. degree in Transplant Immunology with honors from Erasmus University. The majority of his Ph.D. research was conducted at the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute in Pittsburgh. At MUSC, he will be part of the MUSC Lee Patterson Allen Transplant Immunobiology Lab, where he will work on developing ex-vivo treatment of the liver graft during machine perfusion. He recently received the American Society of Transplant Surgeons Natera cfDNA Faculty Research Grant, to further explore the role of cfDNA in ischemia-reperfusion injury. He received various awards for his research, including an Emerging Liver Scholar Award from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, and a Young Investigator Award from the European Society for Organ Transplantation.
In his free time, Dr. van der Windt enjoys being with his family, traveling, and he is an avid runner. He has completed marathons in NYC, Chicago and Paris, France.
In addition to his clinical work, Dr. van der Windt believes that the shortage of donor organs will always fuel innovative research in new ways to increase the number of transplants. He pursued advanced training in transplantation biology and received his Ph.D. degree in Transplant Immunology with honors from Erasmus University. The majority of his Ph.D. research was conducted at the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute in Pittsburgh. At MUSC, he will be part of the MUSC Lee Patterson Allen Transplant Immunobiology Lab, where he will work on developing ex-vivo treatment of the liver graft during machine perfusion. He recently received the American Society of Transplant Surgeons Natera cfDNA Faculty Research Grant, to further explore the role of cfDNA in ischemia-reperfusion injury. He received various awards for his research, including an Emerging Liver Scholar Award from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, and a Young Investigator Award from the European Society for Organ Transplantation.
In his free time, Dr. van der Windt enjoys being with his family, traveling, and he is an avid runner. He has completed marathons in NYC, Chicago and Paris, France.
New Patient Visits
Call Us to Schedule
843-792-6100
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MUSC Health Transplant Clinic at Rutledge Tower
135 Rutledge Ave, 1st Floor, 9th Floor,Charleston, SC 29425