Dr. Can Yerebakan Named Associate Chief of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) - Nationwide Children's Hospital has named Can Yerebakan, MD, PhD, as the associate chief of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery and director of the Congenital CT Surgery Fellowship. Dr. Yerebakan is a principal investigator in the Center for Cardiovascular Research.

Prior to joining Nationwide Children's and the Abigail Wexner Research Institute on Sept. 1, Dr. Yerebakan was the associate chief of cardiovascular surgery at Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C., and a professor of surgery and pediatrics at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

"We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Yerebakan in this role at The Heart Center, where he will provide leadership and support to the faculty as they care for our patients and families," said Mark Galantowicz, MD, chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery and co-director of The Heart Center. "Dr. Yerebakan will bring expertise to our Heart Center as an accomplished clinician and researcher."

Dr. Yerebakan's research interests include alternative treatments for single ventricle heart disease and regenerative therapies for congenital heart disease. Dr. Yerebakan has received a number of awards and recognitions for his continued work in congenital heart disease and improving the outcomes of children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. He will continue to provide the hybrid procedure to children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The single ventricle program and the hybrid procedure significantly improves outcomes and quality of life for affected children.

Dr. Yerebakan has conducted pioneering experimental work in regenerative therapies for congenital heart disease with first time experimental application of autologous umbilical cord stem cells for right heart regeneration. He is interested in improving the outcomes of children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). Dr. Yerebakan is a co-investigator in NIH funded R01 research including a phase 1 clinical trial for bone marrow stem cell treatment for neuroprotection and the experimental study to evaluate age and disease appropriate drug therapies for pediatric hearts. Throughout his career, Dr. Yerebakan has mentored many international doctoral students, postdoctoral research fellows and clinical fellows.

Dr. Yerebakan has contributed to over 150 peer-reviewed publications in journals in three different languages. He is an active scientific reviewer and serves on the editorial boards of several high-impact journals. He is an active member of several professional organizations, including the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery and the German Society for Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery.

Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Dr. Yerebakan completed most of his medical training in Germany. After completing a pediatric cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at Children's National Hospital in D.C., Dr. Yerebakan returned to Germany to practice at the prestigious Pediatric Heart Center of Justus-Liebig University in Giessen.

About Nationwide Children's Hospital

Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report's 2024-25 list of "Best Children's Hospitals," Nationwide Children's Hospital is one of America's largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children's to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children's has a staff of more than 16,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.8 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children's physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org.