Philadelphia, PA — Board-certified transplant surgeon Marty Sellers, MD, MPH, has joined Gift of Life Donor Program as medical director. Dr. Sellers is internationally known for his expertise in expanding opportunities for organ donation to save more lives. He brings more than 30 years of experience to Gift of Life’s team and shares the organization’s vision to end the transplant waitlist.
With the addition of Dr. Sellers, Gift of Life continues to advance its legacy as one of the largest and most successful organ procurement organizations (OPO) in the U.S.
Dr. Sellers will oversee Gift of Life’s team of skilled recovery surgeons focused on improving the quality of organ recovery and the scope of organ preservation services provided. As one of the nation’s leading experts on normothermic regional perfusion (NRP), an innovative procedure to help preserve organ quality, Dr. Sellers will build on Gift of Life’s established record of implementing state-of-the-art clinical practices to increase the number of organs available for transplantation.
“Throughout our 50 years of service, Gift of Life has strived to set the standard for leadership, clinical excellence, and innovation in the field of organ donation and transplantation. Dr. Sellers is an outstanding addition to our team as we continue to innovate, enhance relationships with our hospital partners and increase opportunities to improve organ donation” said Richard D. Hasz, Jr., MFS, CPTC, president and CEO of Gift of Life Donor Program. “Dr. Sellers is strongly committed to improving public health and has been actively involved in donor management, donation-related research, and efforts to improve OPO performance. His distinguished work has led to publications and presentations at multiple national and international transplant meetings.”
Dr. Sellers has strong roots in Philadelphia, where Gift of Life Donor Program is headquartered. He completed his clinical transplant surgery fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). He was associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and surgical director of renal transplantation at CHOP. His experience across the country as a medical director, surgeon, and transplant program founder has helped save countless lives.
“Gift of Life is well known as an international leader in organ donation and transplantation. It’s especially exciting to return to Philadelphia and join Gift of Life as it marks 50 years of extraordinary success. I’m proud to become part of this strong, skilled team that is so dedicated to ending the transplant waitlist. I look forward to working with the region’s excellent surgeons, healthcare teams, and transplant centers to increase the number of patients we can save through donation and transplantation,” Dr. Sellers said.
Gift of Life’s team of more than 300 people works around the clock with 126 acute care hospitals and 12 transplant centers in its region, as well as hundreds of transplant centers throughout the country. The dedicated Gift of Life team has coordinated the most donors and organs for transplant of any OPO in the country since the inception of our national donation system in 1988 thanks to the generosity of donor heroes and their families.
Dr. Sellers is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, American Society of Transplantation, and American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. He served as 2022-23 medical advisor for the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), served on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) OPO Committee from 2017-2020, and is a current member of the UNOS Ad hoc Disease Transmission Advisory Committee.
Dr. Sellers earned his medical degree from the University of Alabama School of Medicine, where he completed his general surgery residency as well as an NIH-sponsored research fellowship in surgical oncology. He graduated cum laude from Auburn University with a Bachelor of Science degree.
About Gift of Life Donor Program
Gift of Life Donor Program, founded in 1974 and headquartered in Philadelphia, is the non-profit federally designated organ procurement organization (OPO) for the eastern half of Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware. It works with 126 acute care hospitals and 12 transplant centers in its region, as well as hundreds of transplant centers throughout the country, to provide the most comprehensive array of services available in the U.S. to the donation and transplantation community. Thanks to the generosity of its community, Gift of Life has coordinated 14,196 donors and 39,469 organs for transplant, the most of any OPO in the country since the inception of our national donation system in 1988. Overall, Gift of Life has coordinated more than 59,000 organs and more than two million tissue transplants since its founding. One organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people, and a tissue donor can improve the lives of 100 others. In honor of its 50 years of service, Gift of Life is rallying the community to sign up 50,000 more organ donors and provide hope to the thousands waiting for a transplant. Learn more and sign up at donors1.org.