Celebrating Leadership in Medicine: Dr. Vatche Agopian

The Armenian American Medical Society is proud to recognize Vatche G. Agopian, MD, Dumont UCLA Chair of Transplantation Surgery and Professor of Surgery and Pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. As Director of the Dumont UCLA Liver Cancer Center, Dr. Agopian leads a multidisciplinary team delivering state of the art care to patients with complex liver disease and malignancies. A nationally respected transplant surgeon and researcher, he is the Principal Investigator of a National Institutes of Health funded translational laboratory focused on developing blood based biomarkers for the early detection of liver cancer. With more than 180 peer reviewed publications and leadership roles in national transplant societies, Dr. Agopian has significantly advanced the field of liver transplantation and hepatobiliary surgery.

Deeply rooted in the Armenian community, Dr. Agopian’s dedication to mentorship and education reflects a lifelong commitment to service. A proud alumnus of Armenian schools and current Board of Trustees member of AGBU Manoogian Demirdjian School, he continues to inspire future generations through hands on mentorship, academic leadership, and outreach to Armenian students pursuing careers in medicine.

We are honored to celebrate Dr. Agopian’s dedication to innovation, mentorship, and patient care, which truly reflects the spirit of the AAMS President’s Leadership Award. We invite you to join us in recognizing his remarkable achievements.