David P. Al-Adra, MD, PhD, FACS
Assistant Professor
- Division of Transplantation
aladra@surgery.wisc.edu
(608) 263-0388
Clinical Science Center
600 Highland Avenue
Madison WI 53792
Education
- MD, University of Alberta
- PhD, Clinical Investigator Program in the Department of Surgery, University of Alberta
- Residency, General Surgery, University of Alberta
- Abdominal Organ Transplant Fellowship, University of Toronto
Clinical Specialties
Dr. Al-Adra is certified by the American Board of Surgery (ABS), the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS), the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada, and the Americas Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA). He specializes in liver, kidney, pancreas and pediatric transplantation, live donor liver transplantation (LDLT), and hepatobiliary surgery.
Dr. Al-Adra and Dr. Aufhauser performed a living liver transplant between two sisters to cure one of them of her rare disorder. Read more here.
Dr. Al-Adra provides a wide range of services including Kidney Transplant, Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy, Liver Resection, Liver Transplant, Pancreas Transplant, Pediatric Liver Transplant, Wedge Resection of the Liver.
Research Interests
Dr. Al-Adra is investigating the mechanisms of immunological rejection after solid organ transplantation. The goal of his research is to decrease the immune response against the organ, which would then decrease the need for anti-rejection drugs. Specifically, the transplanted organs can be modified using normothermic machine organ preservation technologies to decrease rejection after transplantation.
Learn more about Dr. Al-Adra’s lab here.
Dr. Al-Adra was recently awarded a one-year, $65,000 grant from UW’s 2023 Fall Research Competition, which is administered by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research. Read more here.
Dr. Al-Adra received a new one-year, $50,000 Pilot Research Award from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases Foundation. Read more here.
Dr. Al-Adra was recently awarded a two-year, $100,000 Collaborative Scientist Grant from the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. Read more here.
Recent Publications
Rethinking the use of immunotherapy post-liver transplantation: Standardized protocols with low risk of rejection.
Al-Adra DP
Liver Transpl 2025 Dec 12;
[PubMed ID: 41396577]Outcomes of Patients with Localized Renal Cell Carcinoma on Immunosuppression Following Solid Organ Transplantation.
Shah PV, Jason Abel E, Mezrich JD, Carey AZ, Taylor AK, Bregman A, Al-Adra D, Aufhauser D, Collins KM, Mandelbrot D, Lotan P, Lee FT, Louis Hinshaw J, Allen GO, Jarrard DF, Richards KA, Koehne EL, Risk MC, Shapiro DD
Urology 2025 Dec 11;
[PubMed ID: 41389849]De Novo Letermovir After Cytomegalovirus Seropositive Kidney Transplant Improves Toxicity and Mycophenolate Tolerance Over the Current Standard of Care.
Kleiboeker HL, Jorgenson MR, Scolarici MJ, Descourouez JL, Leverson GE, Saddler C, Mandlebrot D, Al-Adra D
Clin Transplant 2025 Dec; 39(12): e70423
[PubMed ID: 41408959]CDK7 is a novel therapeutic target in fibrolamellar carcinoma.
Nukaya M, Carney PR, Cafferty C, Zahed K, Yun I, Al-Adra DP, Kazim NA, Farghli AR, Chan M, Stram A, Kratz JD, Berres ME, Yen A, Gujral TS, Sethupathy P, Bradfield CA, Ronnekleiv-Kelly SM
iScience 2025 Dec 19; 28(12): 113925
[PubMed ID: 41321622]Over 30 Years of Living Liver Donation in North America Mortality Associated With Donation: Erratum.
King EA, Alejandro RH, Emamaullee J, Al-Adra D, Byrne M, Selzner N, Anderson B, Pomfret EA, Olthoff KM
Ann Surg 2025 Nov 01; 282(5): e1
[PubMed ID: 41082481]