Markus Büchler

Markus Wolfgang Büchler
Born	(1955-07-22) 22 July 1955 Saarlouis, Saar
Citizenship	Germany
Education	University of Heidelberg, Free University of Berlin, University of Ulm
Medical career
Profession	Surgeon
Institutions	University of Bern (Inselspital), University of Heidelberg (University Hospital Heidelberg)
Specialism	General surgery, Organ transplantation, Oncology

Markus Wolfgang Büchler (born (1955-07-22)22 July 1955) is a German surgeon, physician, and university professor. He specialises in gastrointestinal, hepatobiliary and transplant surgery, and is especially reputed for pioneering operations of pancreas.

Early life

Büchler was born in Saarlouis, Saar Protectorate (nowadays Saarland federated state in south-west Germany) to Eugene Büchler, a medical internist, and his wife Erika. He spent his school years in Dillingen and in the catholic internat Lender^[1] in Sasbach. In his own words,^[2] he followed his father into medicine, but decided to become a surgeon, since the father hated surgeons, who in his opinion would just kill the patients which he had committed to the hospital. Markus wanted to show his father that he can make it better.

Medical career

From 1974 to 1979, Büchler studied medicine at the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg. Subsequently, he trained in general and cardiovascular surgery at the Free University of Berlin, where, upon completion of the training in 1980, he obtained the medical license. In the same year he defended his doctoral thesis^[3] and received the Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Heidelberg. He further specialised in surgery at the University of Ulm, where he qualified for habilitation and was appointed a senior surgeon in 1987. In 1991 he became associate professor and the vice chairman of the Department of Surgery at the university. During his time in Ulm his focus and interest lay in operations of the digestive organs and in transplant surgery.^[4] In 1993, Büchler moved to Switzerland where he became professor of surgery and chairman of the Department of Visceral and Transplantation Surgery at the University of Bern, Inselspital. In 1999 he also headed the Department of Gastrointestinal, Liver and Lung Diseases. Since 2001, he has been professor of surgery and the director of the Department of General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery at the University Hospital Heidelberg. Since 2003 he is also the managing medical director of the Surgical Clinic at the university. In parallel, he heads since 2005 the department of surgery at the Salem hospital in Heidelberg, and since 2009 the department of surgery at the city hospital in Sinsheim.

Practical and research activities

Büchler's specialism is the surgery of gastrointestinal tract, hepatobiliary system and organ transplantation. A major focus of his practical and research activities is the surgery of pancreas, in particular for the treatment of cancer and chronic pancreatitis. At his initiative, the European Pancreas Center^[5] was established on the basis of the Heidelberg university hospital.

Results of Büchler's clinical and laboratory studies are presented in over 1000 publications.^[6] He also acts as an editor and a member of editorial boards in numerous international medical journals.

Büchler is active in surgical and medical societies. In particular, he was the President of the Swiss Society for Visceral Surgery (1999 and 2000), Vice-President of the Swiss Surgical Society (2000), Elected President of the European Pancreatic Club (2002), President of the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (2006–2008), President of the German Society for General and Visceral Surgery (2010–2011), and is currently the President of the German Society of Surgery (2011–2012).

Academic honours

Since 2009 Büchler has been a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. He is an honorary member of numerous surgical societies and associations. He was awarded the title of Honorary Professor by the Southeast University in Nanjing and by the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, China. He was conferred the degree of Doctor honoris causa by the Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca, the Vasile Goldiş West University in Arad, Romania, the University of Belgrade, Serbia, and by the Belarusian Medical Academy of Post-Graduate Education in Minsk.^[7]

Selected awards

• Ludwig Rehn Award of the Middle Rhine Area Association of Surgeons (1987)^[8]
• Research Award of the Society of Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance (1991)
• Award of the European Association for Gastroenterology and Endoscopy (1993)
• Research Prize of the Swiss Society of Surgery (1995)
• Max Siurala Award, Finnish Society of Gastroenterology (2005)^[9]
• Gimbernat Prize, Catalan Surgical Society (2005)
• Hippocrates Award, Hellenic Society for Internal Medicine (2006)

Family

Büchler is married with Hedwig Maria Breunig-Büchler and has four children.

References

External links

• "Prof. Dr. med. Markus W. Büchler". Heidelberg surgery hospital. Retrieved 22 March 2012. 
• "Director of the Clinic for General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery". Heidelberg surgery hospital. Retrieved 22 March 2012. 
• "Video: Interview with Markus Büchler and an operation of pancreas". European Pancreas Center / Sat1. Retrieved 21 March 2012. 
• "Der Arzt, dem Mubarak vertraut". Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German). 8 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2012.