[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 83 (Tuesday, May 20, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E978]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING DR. ANDREAS G. TZAKIS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. GUS M. BILIRAKIS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 20, 2008

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Andreas G. 
Tzakis, who is the recipient of the Panhellenic Federation of Florida 
Award. A Professor of Surgery at the University of Miami's Miller 
School of Medicine, Dr. Tzakis is one of the top transplant surgeons in 
the world, as well as a preeminent educator and research scientist.
  A native of Greece, Dr. Tzakis attended the University of Athens 
Medical School and served in the medical corps of the Greek Air Force. 
He came to the United States in 1977 where he spent the next 6 years as 
a resident at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and then the State 
University of New York at Stony Brook. It was said that he transformed 
into ``one of the best surgeons in the world,'' while serving as a 
surgical fellow with the world renowned transplant team of Dr. Thomas 
Starzl at the University of Pittsburgh.
  Dr. Tzakis has served in several leadership positions and is a member 
of numerous professional organizations. He is a founding member of the 
International Pancreas and Islet Transplant Association. He has also 
published over 600 papers, abstracts, and book chapters, and has been a 
visiting professor at medical schools across the United States, Europe, 
and Asia. He was recognized internationally in 1994 for the 
transplantation of two baboon livers into humans, and has led the way 
in transplanting insulin-producing cells from the pancreas and 
performing intestinal and multi-visceral organ transplantations.
  Madam Speaker, Dr. Tzakis is not only a great surgeon but has also 
developed innovative techniques that have advanced transplant surgery 
in general. I am truly honored to recognize a person who has 
contributed so much to modern medicine, his peers, and the world. His 
work to save lives is legendary.

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