Dr. Stephan Ariyan, newly named as the Frank F. Kanthak Professor in Plastic Surgery, is an internationally known surgeon who specializes in the surgery of the head and neck, and malignant melanoma.
Ariyan has been recognized for the origination and development of several myocutaneous flaps for reconstructions of the head and neck — most notably the pectoralis major flap, which has become the most commonly used graft for head and neck reconstruction worldwide. He has made major contributions to the field of surgery through his research and publications on the subjects of malignant melanoma, head and neck cancer, myocutaneous flaps, skeletal muscle heart reconstruction, hand surgery, radiation injury, wound healing, bone graft physiology, cosmetic surgery of the face and neck, and breast surgery.
A graduate of Long Island University, Ariyan received his medical degree from New York Medical College. He interned at the University of California-Los Angeles, then completed training in general surgery and plastic surgery at the Yale School of Medicine. He joined the Yale faculty in 1976, was appointed the chair of the Department of Plastic Surgery after three years, and rose to the rank of tenured full professor of surgery in another two years. He served in these positions until 1991, when he entered the Graduate School of Business at the University of New Haven and earned an M.B.A. He has directed the Yale Melanoma Unit at the Yale Cancer Center since 1976.
Ariyan has authored or co-authored more than 300 scientific papers and four surgical books, one of which — “The Handbook” — has also been published in Spanish and Japanese. He has served on the editorial boards of two surgical journals, and as a reviewer of five additional surgical journals.
The Yale professor has served as an officer of a number of national and regional professional organizations and has received several national and international awards, including a Distinguished Fellow Award from the American Association of Plastic Surgeons, eight Distinguished Teacher Awards from the Yale School of Medicine, and a Presidential Award from the Republic of Armenia.