Joseph Shrager MD

Dr. Shrager assumed the role of Professor and Chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery in July 2008. He came to Stanford from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine where he served as Associate Professor and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Hospital. He earned his medical degree at Harvard, trained in surgery at Penn, and completed his thoracic surgery training at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Dr. Shrager has been identified as one of “America’s Top Doctors” and one of “America’s Top Doctors for Cancer” in Castle Connolly’s prestigious listings for multiple years running. Dr. Shrager has been awarded US News and World Report “Top Doctor” recognition in every year since that rating system was inaugurated in 2012 ; this award places him among the top 1% of thoracic surgeons nationwide based upon reviews by physician-peers. Evidence of his expert status among his peers also includes membership on the editorial board of the Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Shrager practices all aspects of thoracic surgery but has specials interest and experience in lung cancer, surgery for emphysema, and mediastinal diseases. His clinical publications reflect these interests. In all cases, he looks towards minimally invasive approaches where appropriate, including VATS (thoracoscopic) lobectomy for early stage lung cancer and transcervical thymectomy.

In the basic research realm, Dr. Shrager has focused upon the responses of the respiratory muscles to various disease states and interventions. His lab’s work has been published in important journals such as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, and The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.