Melissa Rae Kaufman MD, PhD

Dr. Melissa Kaufman is assistant professor of urologic surgery at Vanderbilt Medical Center. She received her B.A. from Washington University – St. Louis and Ph.D. in microbial genetics at University of Tennessee. Following postdoctoral research at Stanford and completion of medical school in her home state of Arkansas, Dr. Kaufman began her urology residency at Vanderbilt in 2002. She completed fellowship training in both male reconstruction and female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery (FPMRS) in 2009 at Vanderbilt.

She is board certified in both urologic surgery and FPMRS. Her practice focuses on female and male voiding dysfunction and incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, neurourology, urologic prosthetics, as well as reconstructive surgery for prostate cancer survivors, urogenital fistula and trauma. She is currently serving as the national principal investigator for a phase III clinical trial regarding use of adult muscle-derived cells for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence in women.