Kirk A. Ludwig, M.D.

Dr. Kirk Ludwig is an Assistant Professor of Surgery, Chief, Section of Gastrointestinal Surgery and Director of the Anorectal Physiology Laboratory at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC. Kirk was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and received an M.D. degree from the University of Cincinnati, in Cincinnati, OH. His general surgery training was conducted at the Medical College of Wisconsin and included a year of surgical research at the Medical College of Wisconsin and 6 months as a surgical registrar at South Warwickshire Hospital, Warwick, England. He then spent a year as a Laparoscopic Colorectal and Research Fellow at the Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH and then completed a colon and rectal residency at the Cleveland Clinic. After completing his colorectal training in 1998, Kirk joined the surgical faculty at the Duke University. He is board certified in General Surgery and Colon and Rectal Surgery.

At Duke, Kirk maintains a busy clinical practice in which the management of colon cancer is a significant component. He is an active member of multiple professional societies and serves on several important committees of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS). He was awarded the Young Clinicians Award of the ASCRS in 1998. In addition to his clinical and teaching activities, Kirk remains an active researcher. He serves as an associate editor of Diseases of the Colon and Rectum, has published over 24 book chapters and 36 peer-reviewed articles, and serves as a reviewer for several major surgical journals.

Kirk lives in Durham with his wife, Elizabeth, and children (Allison, Meridith, and Jillian). When not working, he enjoys spending time outdoors, preferably whitewater canoeing.

On behalf of the readers and staff of Clinics in Colon and Rectal Surgery, I thank Dr. Ludwig for serving as Guest Editor and for providing us with a superb issue on colon cancer.