About

Who is Markus W. Büchler?

Markus Wolfgang Büchler (born on July 22, 1955 in Saarlouis) is a German surgeon and University Professor. Markus W. Büchler graduated from the Heimschule Lender in Sasbach in 1974.

He did his medical school at the Ruprecht Karls University of Heidelberg (1974–1979) and the Free University of Berlin (1979–1980), where he received his license to practice medicine.

He received his doctorate in Heidelberg in 1980. Markus W. Büchler began his surgical training at the Free University of Berlin and later continued it at the University of Ulm, where he habilitated in 1987. He became deputy clinic director and professor in Ulm in 1991. In 1993, at the age of 38, he became chair of the Department of Visceral and Transplant Surgery at the Inselspital University Hospital in Bern, Switzerland. In June 2000, he received an offer to take over the chair of general and visceral surgery in Ulm, which he declined.

In 2001, he returned to Germany and took over the chair of surgery at Heidelberg University Hospital until March 2023. At the same time, he was chief physician of surgery at four other hospitals: Salem Hospital in Heidelberg (since 2005), GRN Hospital Sinsheim (since 2009), GRN Hospital Eberbach (since 2012), and Bergstraße District Hospital Heppenheim (since 2013). He was also director of the European Pancreatic Center, the largest pancreatic cancer center in the Western world.

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Markus W. Büchler is a globally recognized expert in surgery, particularly in pancreatic surgery. With over 3,000 pancreatic surgeries performed, he is one of the most experienced pancreatic surgeons in the world. He is also one of the leading specialists in oncological surgery, i.e., surgery for cancer.

His medical career began with his doctorate in medicine in Heidelberg. He completed his surgical training at the Free University of Berlin and later in Ulm, where he habilitated in 1987. In 1991, he became deputy clinic director and professor there.

Professor Büchler is the director of the Botton-Champalimaud Pancreatic Cancer Center in Lisbon. He also heads the Clinic for Surgical Oncology at the Champalimaud Foundation. There, patients with cancer of the gastrointestinal tract, liver, peritoneum, and soft tissues are operated on according to the latest standards. Thanks to his decades of experience and innovative techniques, he offers his patients the highest level of safety and the best treatment results.

Professor Büchler is an honorary member of more than 30 international surgical societies. Among other things, he was president of the German Surgical Society, the European Pancreas Club, and the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association. He is a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and an honorary member of the American Surgical Association, the American College of Surgeons, and the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of England and Scotland, among others. Since 2010, he has been editor-in-chief of Langenbecks Archiv der Chirurgie. Professor Büchler is a member of the editorial board of many scientific journals and has received numerous awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the European Pancreatic Club in 2016, Living Legend Status from the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association in 2020, and the German Cancer Society Award in 2021.

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Markus W. Büchler has also received seven honorary professorships and seven honorary doctorates from various universities worldwide. In 2022, Professor Büchler was voted number 1 among the 1,000 most cited scientists in the field of medical research in Germany.

Prof Dr. Dr. Buechler - Presentation Vertical

What are Markus W. Büchler’s achievements?

As a surgeon, Professor Büchler has developed numerous modern methods in pancreatic surgery, surgical oncology, minimally invasive surgery, vascular surgery, organ preserving surgery, and radical cancer surgery.

As a clinician scientist, he has co-authored more than 2,000 publications focusing on the molecular basis of gastrointestinal cancers and pancreatic diseases and other clinical surgery issues. His research focuses on translational medicine, oncological surgery, and the development of new surgical techniques. During his work as full professor and chair of surgery for 30 years in Bern and Heidelberg, Professor Büchler has led around 100 surgeons to the position of professor of surgery or chief surgeon.

Prof. Büchler has been honored with numerous prestigious awards for his outstanding achievements in medicine and research, including:

1987: Ludwig Rehn Prize
1988: Prize of the International Association of Pancreatology
1990: Prize of the International Association of Pancreatology
1995: Research Prize of the Swiss Society for Surgery
1999: Fritz Linder Prize of the German Society for Surgery
2005: Max Siurala Prize of the Finnish Society for Gastroenterology
2005: Gimbernat Prize from the Catalan Society for Surgery
2006: Hippocrates Prize from the Hellenic Society for Internal Medicine
2013: Amundsen Medal from the Institute for Surgical Research, Oslo
2014: Rudolf Zenker Prize from the German Society for Surgery
2018: Karl Heinrich Bauer Prize from the German Society for Surgery
2021: German Cancer Prize
2023: Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle Medal from the University of Göttingen
2024: Walther Kausch Medal from the German Society for General and Visceral Surgery
2025: Johann Georg Zimmermann Medal from Hannover Medical School
2025: Willy Robert Pitzer Prize from the Pitzer Foundation

These awards reflect his dedication and pioneering global contributions to surgery and cancer research.

In 2016, he was appointed Senator for Life of the German Society for Surgery and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the European Pancreatic Club. He is an honorary member of numerous professional societies, including the Royal Society of Medicine of England since 1998, the Royal College of Surgeons of England since 2009, the American Surgical Association since 2010, and the American College of Surgeons since 2013. In 2009, he was elected to the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.

He has received honorary doctorates from universities in Cluj-Napoca, Arad (Romania), Belgrade, and Minsk, from the University of Vilnius, Nanjing Medical University, and the University of Pécs, as well as honorary professorships at the Railway Medical College, Southeast University, and the Medical University in Nanjing, as well as in Wuhan, Montevideo, and Prague.

What does Markus W. Büchler do?

Professor Büchler operates on 2–3 patients with pancreatic cancer and other malignant diseases every day, performing a total of 600–800 operations per year. He operates on international patients who have been classified as “inoperable” by other clinics and whose cancer is considered untreatable.

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Markus W. Büchler heads the Botton-Champalimaud Center for Pancreatic Cancer in Lisbon and is director of the Clinic for Surgical Oncology at the Champalimaud Foundation. There, he treats patients with tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, liver, peritoneum, and soft tissues according to the highest medical standards. With his many years of experience and state-of-the-art techniques, he ensures maximum safety and optimal results for his patients.