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Siba Haykal, MD, PhD, FRCS, FACS

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Section Chief of Reconstructive Oncology , Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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Section Chief of Reconstructive Oncology , Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

Biography

Siba Haykal MD, PhD, FRCSC, FACS is the Section Chief of Reconstructive Oncology for the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery within the Department of Surgery. She is a double board certified plastic and reconstructive surgeon. She is an acclaimed specialist in microsurgical reconstruction and has research interests in breast reconstructive surgery and vascularized composite allotransplantation.

Dr Haykal has years of experience delivering care for breast cancer patients. She specializes in autologous based reconstruction (DIEP, PAP, SGAP, TUG, LD). She offers innovative techniques for restoration of breast sensation and immediate lymphatic reconstruction following lymph node dissection. She has extensive experience in treating lymphedema and offers lymphovenous bypass and lymph node transplantation. Dr Haykal also offers microsurgical treatment for skin cancers, head and neck cancers and sarcomas.

Dr. Haykal graduated from the University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine in 2007 as class valedictorian and silver medalist, and subsequently completed her residency training in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Toronto in 2016. During her residency, she completed a PhD in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine with a focus on tracheal reconstruction.

She obtained numerous grants and awards including the Canadian Institute of Health Research Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship for her project, “Evaluation of the Immunogenicity of Decellularized Allografts for Airway Transplantation.” Dr. Haykal pursued fellowship training in microsurgical reconstruction at the Albany Medical Center in New York. She joins the Yale School of Medicine Department of Surgery after serving as an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and University Health Network.

She was named as an honoree for “Canada's Top 40 under 40” for 2021 and is the recipient of American Society for Reconstruction Microsurgery – Women in Microsurgery Travel Scholarship and the Hugh G. Thomson Humanitarian Award for her clinical, academic and research work, and is the author of over 50 peer-reviewed publications including a study published in Advanced Healthcare Materials illustrating the utility of recipient-derived stem cells for airway repair.

Appointments

Departments & Organizations

Education & Training

PhD
University of Toronto
MD
University of Ottawa

Research

Overview

tissuerepairandregeneration.com

In the tissue repair and regeneration lab, we focus on the use of stem cells and tissue engineering techniques to develop clinically translatable therapeutic approaches for organ and tissue repair and replacement. We aim to identify solutions for patients with injuries secondary to trauma or cancer.


Research at a Glance

Yale Co-Authors

Frequent collaborators of Siba Haykal's published research.

Publications

2024

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Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

  • honor

    Department of Surgery, Bernard Langer Surgeon Scientist Award

    Other AwardUniveristy of Toronto Department of Surgery
  • honor

    Alumni Award of Distinction for Rising Star

    National AwardUniversity of Ottawa
  • honor

    Institute of Medical Science Faculty Recognition Award for Strong Teaching

    Other AwardUniversity of Toronto, Institute of Medical Science
  • honor

    Top 40 Under 40

    International AwardAssociation of Women Surgeons
  • honor

    Canada's Top 40 Under 40

    National Award
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Clinical Care

Overview

Siba Haykal, MD, PhD, FRCSC, FACS is a plastic and reconstructive surgeon who cares for patients who have had surgery to remove cancer from the breast and other parts of the body. She specializes in reconstruction with microsurgery, an intricate procedure that uses miniaturized instruments to remove tissue from one part of the body and reattach it to another with the goal of restoring form and function.

Microsurgery is the ‘gold standard’ approach to breast reconstruction for women who have had a mastectomy—the removal of a breast—to treat cancer. Dr. Haykal is skilled in performing “free-flap reconstructions” among other techniques, often immediately after a patient’s mastectomy. These reconstructions involve removing a flap of tissue from the abdomen (DIEP)—or the thighs (PAP, TUG) or buttocks (SGAP, IGAP)—from its blood supply and then reattaching it elsewhere, working with vessels that are 2 or 3 millimeters in size.

In addition, Dr. Haykal offers techniques for restoring breast sensation after cancer surgery and immediate lymphatic reconstruction following lymph node dissection, which can lower a patient’s chances of developing lymphedema (chronic swelling caused by excess lymph fluid that can affect women after breast cancer surgery). She has extensive experience in treating lymphedema and offers treatments that include lymphovenous bypass (LVA, LVB), a procedure to create a path for lymphatic fluid to flow away from the arms, and lymph node transplantation (LNT).

Dr Haykal also offers microsurgical treatment for skin cancer, head and neck cancer, and sarcoma, all of which she says involve decision-making on the part of both doctors and patients. “Relationships with our patients are of utmost importance,” she says. “I’m a member of a cancer team where each of us is involved in different steps, and we all get to know our patients and talk to discuss their treatment preferences.” She discusses options as far as reconstruction and shows patients pictures of what the results of a procedure might look like. “We decide if they're a candidate for one type of procedure or another,” she says. “It's so important to talk to them and listen to their needs. It requires a lot of trust.”

In addition to caring for patients, Dr. Haykal has research interests in breast reconstructive surgery and vascularized composite allotransplantation, which is the transplantation in a single surgical procedure of multiple tissues, such as skin, bone, muscle, and tendon and other tissues.

Dr. Haykal serves as section chief of Reconstructive Oncology for the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery within the Department of Surgery at Yale Medicine.


Clinical Specialties

Breast Reconstructive Surgery; Head & Neck Cancers; Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery

Fact Sheets

Board Certifications

  • Plastic Surgery

    Certification Organization
    AB of Plastic Surgery
    Original Certification Date
    2018

  • Plastic Surgery

    Certification Organization
    Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of CANADA
    Original Certification Date
    2016

Yale Medicine News

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Contacts

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Locations

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