About Shanda Blackmon MD MPH

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Shanda H. Blackmon, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.S., is a minimally invasive thoracic surgeon.  She completed Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency at Baylor College of Medicine, in Houston, Texas.  She was awarded the Clinical Instructorship position in thoracic surgical oncology at MDACC, until she was recruited to build and lead the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Houston Methodist Hospital, where she was Chief of Thoracic Surgery, served as the Director of the Thoracic Tumor Board and Founder/Director of the Lung Cancer Screening Program.  She has led in-person, social media-based and online esophageal support groups for 17 years. She was then recruited to become Professor of Thoracic Surgery within the Department of Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.  She holds several patents including a novel esophageal anastomotic device. She was the founder/Director of the Mayo Clinic Esophageal Tumor Board, Lung Ablation Tumor Board and developed the UDD App, which is a virtual patient management platform for foregut surgery and post-esophageal reconstruction patients.  She developed a specialized team for complex esophageal reconstruction.  She was the Thoracic Surgery Champion for 3D anatomic modeling for complex thoracic resections, ctDNA lab and care pathway algorithm development for AskMayoExpert. She served as the Medical Director of Mayo Clinic Consumer Digital Platform within the Center for Digital Health, and later became Medical Director for User Experience. Her new position as the Executive Director of the Baylor College of Medicine Lung Institute and Olga Keith Weiss Endowed Professor in Surgery for Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. She is dual board-certified by ABS & ABTS. Dr. Blackmon has published over 200 peer-reviewed manuscripts, given over 300 oral presentations, is internationally recognized and has published more than 100 instructional videos (@ShandaBlackmon for Twitter & https://www.youtube.com/c/ShandaBlackmon/videos).  She is a former Deputy Editor for The Annals of Thoracic Surgery. She is the Past-President of Women in Thoracic Surgery, awardee of the Extraordinary Woman in Cardiothoracic Surgery, former Secretary/Treasurer of TSF, current Secretary/Treasurer of STSA, and served as a Council Chair for the Board of Directors for STS. Dr. Blackmon led the development of Mayo Clinic’s first completely virtual longitudinal disease-specific digitally-guided integrated survivorship program, and is the author of “The Support Group,” by Mayo Clinic Press. 

Dr. Shanda Blackmon is a pioneer in thoracic surgery, a skilled professional dedicated to providing the highest quality of care. But as a young doctor early in her career, she was overwhelmed. Her team was working at full capacity and Dr. Blackmon struggled to meet the needs of her many patients. It was strictly a numbers game. A game she was losing.
 

Then one day at the clinic she noticed patients trading stories in the waiting room, sharing not just valuable advice, but empathy and encouragement. That was the genesis of the support group, a safe place where people dealing with cancer and its aftermath could talk openly about what they were going through. It was a lightbulb experience for Dr. Blackmon, and it was just the beginning. Once she saw the difference a committed ally could make in a patient’s long-term survivorship, Dr. Blackmon sought to extend the principles of support to her colleagues.
 

Physicians, surgeons, and other healthcare workers endure long hours under constant stress and can succumb to burnout due to the tidal wave of administrative work, patient complications, and constant pressure from administration to meet impossible demands. The sad truth is, one doctor commits suicide every day in the United States, the highest suicide rate of any profession. Understanding and allyship can make a big difference in their lives, too.
 

The Support Group shares stories of the patients Dr. Blackmon has treated over the years, as well as the healthcare professionals she has worked with. With insight and compassion, Dr. Blackmon takes a candid look at the role of support in our healthcare practices and offers a workable model for patients, caregivers, and providers alike.

Shanda Blackmon MD MPH offers minimally invasive thoracic surgery through the Baylor College of Medicine. Please call the main patient line to access as a patient.