Dr. Melissa Mastroianni is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Surgery, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. She is a dual-trained general and plastic surgeon and has her board certification in general surgery and thus has a broad understanding of the surgical patient. Dr. Mastroianni has research interests in breast cancer stemming from her undergraduate years when she studied breast cancer at the molecular level. She has progressed her academic interests to the macro level and now studies breast cancer patients who undergo reconstruction.
Dr. Mastroianni attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for undergraduate and medical school. She completed general surgery at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and fell in love with New England. During her research years she studied hand and face transplantation and became fascinated with the field of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. She completed her Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery fellowship at the Johns Hopkins and University of Maryland combined program in Baltimore where she had extensive microsurgical training and continued her training in academic medicine.
She is excited to return to the Northeast with her husband, Jonathan Backhaus, and daughters Emma and Charlotte. Jonathan's parents and brother all live in Connecticut, so they are all thrilled to be close to grandparents.
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Mastroianni to the Department of Surgery.