Dr. Susan Galandiuk

Dr. Susan Galandiuk is the Price-Bass Professor of Surgery at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Kentucky, USA; she is also Director of the Price Institue of Surgical Research and of the Division of Colorectal Surgery within the Department of Surgery at the University of Louisville. 

Dr. Galandiuk is a native of New York state and attended medical school in Wuerzburg, Germany. Her general surgery training was at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio followed by Colorectal Fellowship at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. She is a member of the American Surgical Association, the Society of University Surgeons, the Southern Surgical Association, and the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons. Dr. Galandiuk has served as Honorary Professor of Translational Surgical Research at Queen Mary University, London as a sabbatical and previously served as the Price Fellow in Surgical Research before that. She is an Honorary Fellow of the German Surgical Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft) and a past president of the Society of Pelvic Surgeons.

Dr. Galandiuk is the author of several books, many book chapters, and a large number of peer-reviewed research and clinical publications. She serves on the Editorial Boards of several journals including the Annals of Surgery, Surgery, and Surgical Infections. She is Editor-in-Chief of Diseases of the Colon & Rectum, the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons’ professional journal. Dr. Galandiuk’s primary clinical interests are in inflammatory bowel disease and molecular mechanisms of carcinogenesis related to inflammatory bowell disease. She has successfully tutored 16 consecutive successful Ph.D candidates in Physiology in the School of Medicine.

Dr. Jeffrey joined the University of Louisville in 2004. He has a primary interest in robotic surgery and was the first general surgical trainee or colorectal surgeon in Kentucky to complete a robotic procedure. Dr. Jorden essentially created the robotic surgery program at the University of Louisville in 2006 and currently serves as Director of Robotic Surgery.

He has an interest in surgical education and has served as Assistant Program Director for the Colorectal Surgery Fellowship. He has been part of training numerous fellows and residents. Clinical interests include minimally invasive surgery, colorectal cancer, endoscopy, inflammatory bowel disease and anorectal surgery. 

He enjoys running, golfing, and spending time with his family.

An Associate Professor of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Russ Farmer has been with the University of Louisville Department of Surgery for 13 years. Originally from Texas, Dr. Farmer came to us for surgical training and has remained ever since.

His clinical interests include robotic and minimally invasive surgery, inflammatory bowel disease, and sacral nerve neuromodulation. Under his direction, the University of Louisville is one of only two sites participating in prospective longitudinal outcomes research on sacral neuromodulation through industry grant funding in the U.S.

Dr. Farmer also serves as the Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Skills at the University of Louisville School of Medicine – directing the clinical educational experiences of all medical students. Dr. Farmer is the current medical director of the Paris Simulation Center, providing support for simulated patient encounters throughout all levels of medical education. He is proud to be home with his wife and two young sons. 

  Dr. Sandra Kavalukas is a newer member of the team. Originally from Pittsburgh, she came to Louisville after completing her General Surgery Residency at Vanderbilt University and Colorectal Surgery Fellowship at Cleveland Clinic in Florida.

Her clinical interests include inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), colorectal and anal cancer, constipation/motility disorders, diverticulitis, and anorectal problems. She performs both laparoscopic and robotic surgery. With an academic appointment at the University of Louisville and its School of Public Health, she is involved in educating medical students as well as the clinical training of residents and fellows. 

Dr. Kavalukas’s research involves investigating possible environmental causes for the increasing incidence of colorectal cancer in young individuals. She also is focusing on elevated CRC incidence in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods and the role of the exposome in the development of colorectal cancer.  She sits on several committees for the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgery and is a regular manuscript reviewer for several peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Hillary Simon is the newest member of the team. She grew up in a small town in upstate New York and has migrated south throughout her career. She is board-certified in surgery, completing her general surgery residency with Allegheny Health Network in Pittsburgh, PA. She completed her colon and rectal surgery fellowship training here at the University of Louisville. She joined the U of L Colon and Rectal Surgery Faculty after fellowship training. 

Her clinical interests include patient pre-habilitation/optimization of frailty, caring for the underserved, hereditary colorectal disorders, and minimally invasive surgery for colorectal diseases. She performs robotic, laparoscopic, and open surgery for all types of colorectal diseases, as well as anorectal procedures. 

Dr. Simon is involved in the education of U of L medical students, general surgery residents, and colorectal surgery fellows. She is a content creator and host for the popular, "Behind the Knife" surgical education podcast. She is a reviewer for several peer-reviewed general surgery and colorectal surgery journals and serves on the program committee for the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons.