Today is the first episode of a two-part interview where Dr. John Petrozza chats with Dr. Jacques Donnez who has carved out a niche in the field of reproductive medicine not only as an astute researcher but also as a surgeon.

Join ASRM Today for a special 14-episode bonus series about surgical legends, "On the Shoulders of Giants: Perspectives in Minimally Invasive Reproductive Surgery". Crafted by the Society of Reproductive Surgeons, each episode will be an in-depth interview with a distinguished pioneer of reproductive surgery. Sit back, grab a cup of coffee, and enjoy what we think are valuable lessons about our history, sparking innovation, and newer applications of reproductive surgery. Jacques Donnez, M.D. was born in Tournai (Belgium) on 16 July, 1947. He studied at the Catholic University of Louvain and defended his PhD thesis in 1984, entitled “The fallopian tube: normal and pathological histophysiology”. He became Full Professor and Head of the Department Gynaecology and Andrology in 1986. He also founded the Academic Infertility Research Unit of the Catholic University of Louvain in 1986.

He has focused his research activities on three main topics: tubal infertility, endometriosis and finally, ovarian cryopreservation and transplantation. He has published more than 700 original articles in peer-review journals. Professor Donnez was the founding president of ESGE (European Society of Gynecological Endoscopy) and the first president of WES (World Endometriosis Society) as well as the first President of the International Society for Fertility Preservation (ISFP). He has been elected in February 2009 to the Royal Belgian Academy of Medicine.

Since 2012, he has been Professor Emeritus at the Catholic University of Louvain and Director of SRI (Société de Recherche pour l’Infertilité) in Brussels. He is a member of several SAB (Scientific Advisory Boards) and is still involved in several clinical international multicenter studies on endometriosis and uterine fibroids, and collaborates with the Academic Unit of Professor M.M. Dolmans, project leader and pioneer in the field of fertility preservation in women.

Videos of the Surgical Legends interviews will be available to SRS Members on the Society of Reproductive Surgeons website.

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