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35th Annual Fraser N. Gurd VP Event -听May 29th, 2025
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35th Annual Fraser N. Gurd Visiting Professor
Diana L. Farmer, MD
Department of Surgery, University of California,
Davis, Chief of Pediatric Surgery, Shriner's Hospitals
California, USA
Dr. Diana L. Farmer, an internationally renowned fetal and neonatal surgeon, is Distinguished Professor, Pearl Stamps Stewart Endowed Chair, and Chair of the Department of Surgery, University of California, Davis. She is also Chief of Pediatric Surgery at Shriner's Hospitals - Northern California, and Founder and Co-director of the Center for Surgical Bioengineering.
Dr. Farmer's lab focuses on regenerative medicine, specifically in utero stem cell therapy for myelomeningocele (MMC), the most severe form of spina bifida. In 2000, Dr. Farmer's team made the seminal discovery that hindbrain herniation could be ameliorated by prenatal surgical repair in fetal sheep. This breakthrough led to the $22 million-dollar, multicenter Management of Myelomeningocele Study (MOMS), a randomized听human clinical trial of MMC closure before and after birth. The trial showed conclusively that fetal surgery resulted in better outcomes. Dr. Farmer is now developing an allogeneic placental mesenchymal stem cell product to further treat in utero spina bifida. Her lab received Investigational New Drug听 IND) approval with the Food and Drug Administration in 2020. Patient enrollment in the CuRe (Cellular Therapy for in Utero Repair of MMC) clinical trial is currently underway.
Dr. Farmer has been honored with numerous awards throughout her career, including being a Luce Scholar, a recipient of Wellesley College's Alumnae Achievement Award, a member of the听 Royal College of Surgeons of听England, past President of the American Pediatric Surgical Association, and past Chair of the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons. Dr. Farmer has long been a leader in global surgery. In 2016, she founded the Global Initiative for Children's Surgery and received the 2020 Universitas 21 Award for her contribution to Internationalization in Surgical Education. She is a Regent of the American College of Surgeons and was the 2022 President of the American Surgical Association.