#14: An Interview With World-Renown Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgeon & Chair of Surgery - Charles Yeo

Charles J. Yeo is a hepatopancreaticobiliary surgeon here at Jefferson. He was born in East Orange, New Jersey, and attended Spring Valley Senior High School in Spring Valley, New York. He received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University in 1975, summa cum laude with an A.B. in Biochemistry. Dr. Yeo graduated in 1979 from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, being awarded the Upjohn Achievement Award and he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha and Phi Beta Kappa. While completing his internship and residency in General Surgery at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, he pursued a one year Research Fellowship at the S.U.N.Y. Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Dr. Yeo joined the faculty of the Johns Hopkins University as an Instructor and Assistant Chief of Service in the Department of Surgery in 1985, and rose to the rank of Professor of Surgery in 1996. In 1997, he became a Professor in the Department of Oncology. Dr. Yeo directed the Pancreatic Cancer Interdisciplinary Working Group at Johns Hopkins, and served as the Surgical Clerkship Coordinator and Surgical Curriculum Consultant. In 2002, Dr. Yeo was named to an endowed chair at Johns Hopkins, becoming the inaugural John L. Cameron M.D. Professor for Alimentary Tract Diseases. On October 1, 2005 Dr. Yeo was named the 8th Samuel D. Gross Professor and he assumed the chairmanship of the Department of Surgery at Jefferson (now Sidney Kimmel) Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals, and as the Senior Vice President and Chair of Enterprise Surgery for Jefferson Health (an 18 hospital system). Dr. Yeo has authored over 500 peer reviewed scientific papers, 105 book chapters, and over 15 books or monographs. Dr. Yeo is also known as the “Whipple King” having completed over 1700 Whipple procedures and treated 2100 patients with pancreatic and related cancers. Thank you so much Dr. Yeo for taking the time to speak with me.
All proceeds from this episode go to Friends Against Pancreatic Cancer Fund and the Drs. Francis and Ernest Rosato Fund for Surgical Education and Research.
___
0:00 - Intro
2:22 - What Is Hepato Pancreato Biliary Surgery?
3:00 - Whipple Procedure
9:13 - Treating Pancreatic Cancer
14:15 - How Did You Become the Whipple King?
17:14 - Navigating and Choosing Surgery in Med School
25:57 - Residency
32:41 - Memorable Experiences While at John Hopkins
37:11 - Going Into Hepato Pancreato Biliary Surgery
51:44 - An Average Day/Week as a Chair of Surgery
56:40 - Best Thing About Being an HPB Surgeon
58:52 - Worst Thing About Being an HPB Surgeon
1:05:16 - Differences in Becoming the Chair of Surgery
1:08:16 - Best Things About Working in Academia
1:10:28 - Characteristics of the Best Med Students/Residents
1:11:26 - Maximizing Competitiveness Going Into Surgery
1:14:10 - Favorite Historical Surgeon
1:15:42 - Responsibility of Surgeons in Advocacy of Social Change
1:17:30 - Advice for Graduating Med Students
1:19:58 - Very Important Question!!!
___
Resources
The Smart Take from the Strong by Pete Carril - a.co/d/is7c0cN
___
View the Show Notes Page for This Episode for transcript and more information: zhighley.com/podcast
___
Connect With Zach
Main KZbin: @ZachHighley
Newsletter: zhighley.com/newsletter/
Instagram: zachhighley...
Website: zhighley.com
Twitter: / zachhighley
Linkedln: / zach-highley-gergel-44...
Business Inquiries: [e-mail]
___
Listen for Free
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/23TvJdE...
Apple Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
___
Welcome to the Zach Highley Show, where we discuss personal growth and medicine to figure out how to improve our lives. My name is Zach and I’m a medical student, and soon to be physician, in Philadelphia. Throughout these episodes I’ll interview top performers from around the world in business, life, and medicine in hopes of extracting the resources and techniques they use to get to the top.
The best way to help the show is share episodes on any platform. If you think a friend or family member will like a certain episode, send it to them!

[@Som.Suwadee]

He speaks with such certainty. Best guest so far for the values this brings me and I’m not even in medical field. Thanks, Zach.

[@TheZachHighleyshow]

Definitely one of the top guests, agreed.

[@anacarpenter9254]

Good afternoon Dr Yeo your interview with Zac Highley has me flummoxed in a good way. It's Christmas 🎄 Eve tomorrow and sitting relaxing, while preparing all sorts. Pausing, then listening at the best part of my day. To 2 very intellectual men. The parrying was interesting. Very polite. Drawing my breathe at the commitment levels. Thank you for revealing the human side of being a doctor...very important titled person. Broadly commenting the people of the USA 🇺🇸 are in safe hands including the rest of the world 🌎.

[@jeromenimer1612]

Like talking to a Nobel Laureate 🥰 So happy for you🤩

[@limitlesspatricio777]

As a Canadian who's applying to medical school, your conversation, Zach, with Dr. Yeo will stick with me for the rest of my career. Thanks and congratulations to you for starting this podcast and thanks to Dr. Yeo for sharing his wisdom with us all!

[@wholeNwon]

Jefferson will reach its 200th anniversary next year. As you may know, Dr. Gross succeeded Dr. Thomas Dent Mutter as Professor of Surgery. Dr. Mutter brought plastic and reconstructive surgery to the USA. I believe he was a student of Dupuytren among others. I met a man who was apparently cured of CA of the head of the pancreas with a Whipple procedure performed in the early 1960s by Dr. Frederick B. Wagner, Jr., the Ossler Professor of Surgery at Jefferson. Jefferson has a very long and storied history of excellence in surgery.

[@Brickswol]

That Cadillac RV story is wild.

[@nezorhouli1702]

Incredible master of surgery and HPB surgery. I use the John Hopkins techniques in my pancreas surgical techniques and have been trained that have worked by this incredible surgeon Dr Yeo Thanks Zach for heat interview Dr nezor Houli HPB surgeon, Melbourne, Australia I thought I was a king of the whipple After hearing this interview: I am a little prince

[@dventurimramos]

Another brilliant episode!

[@TheZachHighleyshow]

Thank you, he was a great guest!

[@Spicytots5]

One of my favorite interviews of all time. Incredibly motivating. Would love if you could speak with Dr. Yeo again about if the sacrifice he made in his early career were worth the success he has achieved and the difference he has made. What an incredible surgeon and human being!

[@SoloJedi_]

Amazing interview Zach. Thank you

[@nicholasbyrd1964]

Real life Dr House

[@Brickswol]

10th

[@davidc4408]

You can tell interviewer is out of his depth

[@jacksta6386]

I disagree, the guy he is interviewing is a literal genius in a very specific field. The interviewer did a great job here in my opinion.

[@jacksta6386]

It’s easy for you to say on the couch, but much different to experience being across the table from a heavyweight like this guy