Donald Christian Dafoe is an American surgeon and

research scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosophic ...

Biography

The eldest son of a surgeon, Dafoe graduated from

Appleton West High School Appleton West High School (or AWHS, formerly known as Appleton Senior High School or Appleton High School) is a comprehensive public secondary school located in Appleton, Wisconsin that serves students in the ninth through twelfth grades. The ...

in Appleton,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, in 1967, where he was on the football and wrestling teams. He then attended the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

, where he received his undergraduate degree in

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

and his

medical degree A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...

. He became a transplant surgeon after training in surgery at the Hospital of the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, and now works at University of California Irvine Medical Center in Orange, California, where he is chief of transplantation surgery. He previously worked at

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

, where he was Director of the Pancreas Transplantation, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Center; Director of Surgical Education; and held the Eris M. Field Endowed Chair in

Diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

Research. He was previously medical director for the California Transplant Donor Network. He has written over 160 peer-reviewed articles, and has been on the editorial board of ''Journal of Surgical Research'', ''The Chimera'', and ''Transplantation Science''. Ex-husband to vascular surgeon Dr. Rhoda Dafoe and Sahara Dafoe, he is a father of six, and is the brother of actor

Willem Dafoe Willem James Dafoe (; born July 22, 1955) is an American actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, in addition to receiving nominations for four Academy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, t ...

. He also has five sisters and another brother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dafoe, Donald American transplant surgeons Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) People from Appleton, Wisconsin Physicians from Wisconsin University of California, Irvine faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health alumni