General Surgery Research Resident Cozette Killian, M.D. MPH, recently received the 2021 Young Innovator Award from the American Society of Transplantation. Killian received the award for her abstract submission, “Living Donor Kidney Transplantation Racial Disparities Persist Independent of Social Vulnerability.”

Killian is a member of the UAB Transplant Epidemiology and Analytics in Medicine (TEAM) lab under the mentorship of Dr. Jayme Locke. The UAB TEAM seeks to enhance knowledge within the field of transplantation by conducting complex statistical analyses that model transplant outcomes and practices and behavioral research that focuses on eliminating health disparities in transplantation.

“It is an honor to receive this award – I am so grateful for the support from the TEAM family, the UAB NRTC and UAB Surgery that made this possible,” said Killian. “I look forward to presenting our research and representing UAB Surgery.”

Since the AST’s 2021 Cutting Edge of Transplantation (CEOT) meeting is virtual this year, the AST will furbish Killian’s registration fee, as opposed to traditional travel fees. The theme for this year’s virtual CEOT meeting is “Innovation in Modern Immunosuppression: Ideas and Implications.”

Founded in 1982, the AST is an organization of more than 4,000 professionals dedicated to advancing the field of transplantation and improving patient care by promoting research, education, advocacy, and organ donation. The society is the largest transplant organization in North America and is recognized as the premier society for transplantation.