Director of the Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive Surgery

Dr. Frantzides is the Director of the Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive Surgery (CIMIS); Director of the Laparoscopic and Bariatric Fellowship Program and clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of Illinois, Chicago. He is recognized worldwide as an expert in the field of laparoscopic surgery and is a charter member of the United States Laparoscopic Founders Society. His experience in laparoscopic gastrointestinal surgery is one of the most extensive in the United States.

Dr. Frantzides created the Minimally Invasive Surgery Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and was the Director of the center from 1995-1997. Dr. Frantzides has served as the Director of the Minimally Invasive Surgery Center and professor of surgery at the University of Chicago from 1997 to 2000. He was also the Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Weiss Memorial Hospital from 1997-2000. Dr. Frantzides was the Director of Minimally Invasive Surgery at Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center in Chicago and professor of surgery at Rush University. He was also the director of Minimally Invasive Surgery (2003-2006) and director of the Minimally Invasive Surgery Fellowship Program (2003-2008) at Northshore University Health System (previously known as Evanston Northwestern Healthcare). Under his Directorship, and because of his high volume of procedures and excellent outcomes Evanston Northwestern Healthcare was named a “Center Of Excellence” by the American College of Surgeons. In addition Dr. Frantzides was Professor of Surgery at Northwestern University from 2004-2009.

He has traveled internationally to perform and teach laparoscopic operations. In recognition of his efforts in teaching advanced laparoscopic techniques, he was named Honorary Member of the Brazilian Society of Surgery (Colegio Brasileiro de Cirurgia Digestiva), the Hellenic Surgical Association, and the Greek Laparoscopic Society. During the last 19 years, he has organized 31 laparoscopic courses through which 331 surgeons were trained in laparoscopic surgery. He has created the first laparoscopic fellowship program in the United States (1995) for training young surgeons in the art of minimally invasive surgery.

Dr. Frantzides is a member of numerous professional societies and has been the recipient of several awards and honors as well as grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and from the surgical industry. Dr. Frantzides has made more than 200 contributions to the medical literature and has written three books on laparoscopic surgery.

He was the first in the world to introduce and perform 14 different laparoscopic procedures. He has worked extensively on the laparoscopic management of gastro- esophageal reflux disease and hiatal hernia, incisional hernia, treatment of esophageal achalasia and the laparoscopic treatment of benign and malignant diseases of the colon. Dr. Frantzides has extensively published in peer reviewed medical journals on the above mentioned ailments and other diseases managed in a minimally invasive approach. He performed the fist in the world prospective randomized trial of laparoscopic mesh repair of large hiatal hernias (Archives of Surgery 2002) and he introduced “The Frantzides Technique” for the treatment of esophageal high grade dysplasia and Barrett’s esophagus (American Journal of Surgery 2016). He developed a new safer technique for the laparoscopic gastric bypass (“Triple Stapling Technique” Archives of Surgery, 2003.) Dr. Frantzides was the first surgeon to define and publish the importance of preserving the Vagus nerve during a gastric bypass for avoidance of the dumping syndrome (Obesity Surgery 2011). He is credited with inventing two surgical instruments used in laparoscopic surgery.

In recognition of his academic activities in laparoscopic surgery as well as his surgical skills he was given the “Achievement award for advanced laparoscopic surgery” by the American Society of General Surgeons. He was named in 2007 & 2008 America’s Top Surgeon and as the Most Compassionate Doctor by the Consumers’ Research Council of America (2010-2014). In addition Dr. Frantzides was named “Top Doctor” by the Chicago Magazine (2012-2016). He was given the “Certificate of Excellence” by US News & World Report 2011, 2012 & 2013. He was also named “America’s Top Doctor” by the acclaimed Castle Connolly Medical Guide for 10 consecutive years (2009-2018).

Dr. Frantzides has been highlighted in several editions of Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in Medicine and Healthcare, Who’s Who in Science and Engineering, Who’s Who in the Midwest, and Who’s Who in the World since 1993. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to his profession he has been featured on the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement website.

Mark A. Carlson, M.D. obtained a Doctor of Medicine degree from Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland), and then in 1995 completed a residency in General Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Carlson was Dr. Frantzides’ first Fellow in Minimally Invasive Surgery in 1995-1996. From 1996 to 1999, Dr. Carlson was a Research Fellow at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Since 1999, Dr. Carlson has been at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, where he currently is Professor in the Department of Surgery and a Staff Surgeon at the VA Medical Center in Omaha. He is board certified by the American Board of Surgery, with a sub-specialty in advanced laparoscopic general surgery. His clinical interests include gastroesophageal reflux disease, abdominal wall hernia, and gastrointestinal malignancy. Together with Dr. Frantzides, Dr. Carlson published in 2009 the first comprehensive DVD-Atlas of Minimally Invasive Surgery & in 2014 he was the co-author with Dr. Frantzides of the Video Atlas of Advanced Minimally Invasive Surgery. In addition to his practice of general and minimally invasive surgery, Dr. Carlson runs a federally-funded basic science laboratory which studies wound healing and regeneration. He is leading a research effort to engineer a skin replacement therapy and also a novel hemostatic bandage for life-threatening bleeding. He has over 90 contributions to the medical literature.

Dr. Roberts received his medical degree at Michigan State University and was chief resident St. John Oakland hospital. He is board certified in general surgery. Dr. Roberts was Dr. Frantzides fellow (2008-2009) and he completed his fellowship at the Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive Surgery and at St. Francis hospital at Evanston, IL. He played a key role in the gathering of clinical data for the completion of two important studies. In specific, the effects of Vagotomy on gastric bypass patients and the use of anticoagulants in bariatric patients.

A native of Chicago land, Dr. Glover received her M.D. from Rush-Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center. She served her internship and initial residency in General Surgery at Indiana University, and continued her residency in General Surgery at the University of Chicago. She also pursued a fellowship in trauma/critical care at Illinois Masonic Medical Center. Dr. Glover is board certified in General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care. Dr. Glover was Dr. Frantzides’ laparoscopic fellow for the period of July 2009 to June 2010.

Dr. Marcinkevicius is a graduate of Vilnius/Lithuania/University Medical School. After completion of his residency program he became a board certified surgeon in 1985. In 1990 Dr. Marcinkevicius completed his thesis and received a PhD degree in medicine; in 1990-1992 he worked as a visiting Research Scholar in the School of Public Health at the University of Illinois; 1993-1995 he did a fellowship at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston and in 1996-1997 a fellowship at St. Vincent Hospital in Portland, OR. Dr. Marcinkevicius has authored multiple scientific papers and chapters, and he is certified by the European Board of Surgeons. Dr. Marcinkevicius is currently a Laparoscopic Fellow with the Chicago Institute of Minimally Invasive surgery.