Marc Melcher Receives 2026 John Levin Excellence in Leadership Award

Marc L. Melcher, MD, PhD, chief of the Division of Abdominal Transplantation and professor of surgery at Stanford Medicine, has received the 2026 John Levin Excellence in Leadership Award from the Stanford Health Care Board of Directors.

On receiving the award, Melcher shared "I feel very fortunate to be here at Stanford, surrounded by so many role models and mentors. This work is truly a team effort, and I'm grateful to collaborate every day with a multidisciplinary group dedicated to giving patients with organ failure and cancer a second chance."

Melcher has directed both the Stanford Surgery Residency Program and the Abdominal Transplant Surgery Fellowship Program. He is also a founder of the Stanford Transplant Symposium.

His research focuses on increasing access to transplantation and improving outcomes for patients with liver and kidney disease. He has held leadership positions with national organizations, including the American Board of Surgery’s Transplant Advisory Committee.

Melcher’s clinical work includes improvements to waitlist management that increased transplant rates and reduced time to transplant, readmissions and waitlist mortality. His work also contributed to Stanford Medicine’s liver transplant program achieving leading results in Northern California.

In addition to embodying SHC’s core values, the awardees were recognized for outstanding leadership, clinical excellence, compassionate care and community involvement.