The UCLA Department of Head and Neck Surgery was recently ranked No. 1 by U.S. News & World Report. Among other firsts, the department has achieved a success rate that exceeds 99% in performing approximately 1,500 head and neck cancer and microvascular reconstructive surgeries during the 20 years since the program was established. In many ways, this distinction rests on the shoulders of Dr. Thomas C. Calcaterra, one of the founders of the department who spent his career fostering an environment of constant innovation, leadership and mentorship, always with the goal of patient-focused excellence.
This year, the Thomas & Ellen Calcaterra Revocable Trust gifted $2 million to establish the Thomas C. Calcaterra, M.D., Endowed Clinical and Research Fellowship in Head and Neck Surgery. Dr. Calcaterra and his wife, Ellen, who met while she was earning her master’s degree from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, were married for 36 years until his death in 2021. This generous contribution expands Dr. Calcaterra’s legacy.
“Tom’s passion was excellence in clinical care and research for head and neck cancers,” Mrs. Calcaterra said. “My hope is that physicians who receive this fellowship are inspired by Tom’s leadership, his commitment to patients and his dedication to advancing the discipline.”
The fund will support advanced training in the UCLA Department of Head and Neck Surgery for clinicians who work to advance the head and neck cancer field, improve outcomes for these patients and educate and mentor generations of head and neck cancer surgeons and scientists.
Dr. Calcaterra, a world-renowned surgeon, educator and mentor, served as a faculty member at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA for almost four decades and retired as professor emeritus. During his tenure, he is credited with training more than 175 surgeons, publishing over 220 papers and more than 20 textbooks and receiving international recognition and awards for his visionary work. Mrs. Calcaterra says he never spoke of the awards, but rather that he was proudest of training the residents whom he loved and publishing the papers with them.
“Tom’s passion was excellence in clinical care and research for head and neck cancers”
After his retirement, the Calcaterras made a $2 million contribution to create the Thomas C. Calcaterra, M.D., Recruitment Fund for Head and Neck Surgery to help recruit and support the chair of the department. At the time of the gift, Dr. Calcaterra was quoted as saying, “I was on the UCLA faculty for more than 35 years. This donation is our way of returning something to a department that was very good to me.”
The recruitment fund was later converted to the Thomas C. Calcaterra, M.D., Chair in Head and Neck Surgery, currently held by Dr. Maie St. John (RES ’05), a mentee of Dr. Calcaterra. An internationally renowned surgeon, scientist and educator, Dr. St. John is professor and chair of the Department of Head and Neck Surgery, co-director of the UCLA Head and Neck Cancer Program and professor of bioengineering.
“Having been mentored by Dr. Calcaterra, I experienced firsthand the power of developing relationships and interdisciplinary research to better serve our patients and the global community,” said Dr. St. John. “The department that he helped found and foster continues to pioneer groundbreaking treatments. The power of this philanthropy allows us to continue his legacy of developing novel treatments, training generations of leaders in the field and delivering the best possible care to our patients.”
“My hope is that physicians who receive this fellowship are inspired by Tom’s leadership, his commitment to patients and his dedication to advancing the discipline.”
“It gives me great joy to honor the many contributions and lifelong commitment to the field of head and neck surgery of my dear husband,” Mrs. Calcaterra said. “He was a pioneer in shaping the field. I am grateful his legacy will continue to be an integral pillar of the UCLA Department of Head and Neck Surgery and the field at large. Tom loved his patients, and he always wanted to give back to them. This is my way of fulfilling his dream.”
Mrs. Calcaterra hopes her philanthropy will inspire others to invest in this community. She describes contributing to the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and giving to UCLA as offering a “double-bonus” of supporting human health care as well as education.
For more information, contact Ellen Haddigan-Durgun at: 310-321-8366
Jacqueline Mazarella is a writer for UCLA Health Sciences Development.
