Dr. J. Robert Headrick, MD MBA is the Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the CHI Memorial Rees Skillern Cancer Institute in Chattanooga.
Dr. H was born and raised in Chattanooga where he fell in love with time spent on the lakes, rivers, and creeks throughout the area. Growing up, Rob gained a first hand perspective of the plight of a lung cancer diagnosis when his uncle received his own. This instilled a passion in him to help others with similar diagnoses. Upon graduating from Baylor High School, he was ready to get out of town and start his own adventure.
His started this adventure at Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, where he earned a degree in Biomedical Engineering. This degree would prove to be the perfect foundation for his career where he has been a leader in developing the modern treatments helping patients to recover and stay in remission more often than ever thought possible with a lung cancer diagnosis.
Dr. Headrick’s medical education and General Surgery residency took place within the University of Tennessee system. Upon completion of that, he left for the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota to complete a fellowship in Thoracic Surgery.
Eventually, Rob found his way back home to Chattanooga, the community that raised him, to care for those suffering from lung cancer in one of the areas most impacted by the disease.
Today, he is known for his pioneering work in modernizing the operating room, creating innovative solutions to reduce pulmonary air leaks, and leading the development of a mobile CT platform for lung cancer screening, Breathe. Easy. His dedication and advocacy for lung cancer research and support have earned him recognition, including the Physician Inspiration Award from the Southern Thoracic Surgical Association and acknowledgment by the STS for his advocacy efforts in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Headrick's remarkable career has been marked by many accomplishments along the way, including being awarded the Health Policy and Leadership scholarship at Brandeis University by the STS/ACS and obtaining an MBA from the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee.