Robin Yang, MD

Sang Hun Lee, M.D., Ph.D, is a fellowship-trained spine surgeon with expertise in complex cervical spine (neck) and spine tumor surgery. Dr. Lee specializes in the latest orthopaedic and neurosurgical techniques in cervical spine degenerative disc disease, cervical spine minimally invasive procedures, cervical spine deformities, cervical spinal reconstruction, and management of spinal tumors (primary and metastatic spine tumors). Dr. Lee is also performing endoscopic spine surgeries, which is the most technically advanced minimally invasive spine surgery for cervical and lumbar disc herniation or spinal stenosis using uniportal or biportal endoscopic procedures. Dr. Lee was a Full Professor and taught numerous residents and fellows in South Korea from 1999 to 2015, and he became a renowned cervical spine expert in the Asia-Pacific region. As a founding member of Korean and Asian Pacific Cervical Spine, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery and Spinal Tumor Research Societies, Dr. Lee has been a key speaker and thought leader at numerous international spine meetings. He has also been invited to visit and operate with leading spine surgeons in the U.S., Japan and around the world.Dr. Lee regularly teaches other surgeons at national and international meetings on safety and efficiency when performing cervical spine surgery, the latest techniques in the field and strategies for complication avoidance. He has been on the faculty at the Cervical Spine Research Society meetings and the instructional courses. Dr. Lee is an international expert on diagnosis, nonsurgical and surgical treatment of cervical spine conditions and spine tumors. He has authored or co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications, book chapters and articles on diagnosis and treatment of spinal conditions. His work has resulted in numerous research awards and podium presentations. Dr. Lee completed his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees at the prestigious Kyung Hee University, School of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea. He completed his orthopaedic surgery residency and spine fellowship at Kyung Hee University hospital in Seoul, one of the most prestigious programs in Asia. Dr. Lee also pursued advanced spinal tumor and neurosurgical oncology training at the prestigious MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, where he worked with world-experts on complex spinal tumor reconstructive surgery.

Chetan Bettegowda is the director of the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurosurgery. He offers comprehensive treatments for adult patients with benign and malignant brain tumors, specializing in the treatment of patients with primary brain tumors such as gliomas, meningiomas and pituitary tumors. He performs both open surgery and stereotactic radiosurgery for patients with metastatic tumors to the brain, and also provides stereotactic radiosurgery for other neurological disorders, including spinal tumors, trigeminal neuralgia and skull-base tumors.

Dr. Damon S. Cooney is an associate professor of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Cooney performs all types of general plastic surgery but specializes in microvascular reconstruction (free flaps). A particular focus of his clinical practice is improving the functional and aesthetic results of head and neck reconstruction.He completed additional fellowship training at the University of Pittsburgh to become an expert in microsurgical techniques for reconstructing the extremities, trunk, breast, and head and neck following traumatic and/or oncological defects. Dr. Cooney earned a Ph.D. from Ohio State University Department of Molecular, Cellular and Development Biology.Dr. Cooney’s clinical and basic research focus is composite tissue allotransplantation (CTA). He is a member of the Composite Tissue Allotransplantation team at Johns Hopkins and helps conduct human hand and face transplantation trials. His laboratory work includes engineering human tissues for reconstructive purposes, nerve regeneration, microsurgical education and inducing tolerance in order to reduce or eliminate the need for systemic immunosuppression in transplantation patients.Dr. Cooney has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters in addition to being a reviewer for plastic surgery journals. He is a founding member of the American Society for Reconstructive Transplantation.