Matthew Cooper

After receiving his medical degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1994, Dr Cooper completed his general surgery training at the Medical College of Wisconsin followed by a fellowship in multi-organ abdominal transplantation in 2002 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. He joined the transplant faculty at the Johns Hopkins Hospital upon completion of his training and was appointed Surgical Director of Kidney Transplantation and Clinical Research in 2003.  Dr. Cooper joined the University of Maryland in 2005 directing the kidney transplant and clinical research program until 2012 following which he assumed his current role in Washington, DC.

Dr. Cooper seeks new opportunities for living donation through innovation and by removing the disincentives for those considering donation while promoting the safety and long-term care of live organ donors.  His clinical interests included kidney and pancreas transplantation; particularly the use of marginal organs and has chaired both an NKF sponsored Task Force to decrease kidney allograft discards and a UNOS-sponsored System Performance Improvement Committee which have led to several exciting projects to potentially bring more patients an opportunity for transplantation.  Dr. Cooper is involved in several ongoing clinical research projects primarily with an interest in immunosuppression minimization and amelioration of delayed graft function in kidney allografts following ischemic reperfusion injury. He has authored over 220 peer-reviewed manuscripts, 300 abstracts and 12 book chapters. He is regularly invited to speak on a variety of transplant-related topics both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Cooper is involved in transplantation activities both locally and on a national basis.  He is the current UNOS/OPTN President.  He is a member of the National and DC Board of Directors for the NKF and a member of the NKF’s National Transplant Task Force.  He has served as the chairman of the United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS) Living Donor Committee and recently acted as the Councillor for UNOS’ Region 2.  He is a current councillor for the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.  He is a current board member for the National Kidney Registry, the American Foundation for Donation and Transplantation, the International Pancreas and Islet Cell Transplant Association, and Donate Life America.  Dr. Cooper has served as Chair of the American Transplant Congress.