Manuel Gomez-Tschrnko, MD

I am from Charlotte, NC. I studied Biology at Wake Forest University and before going to medical school, I worked as an EMT and high school chemistry teacher. I completed medical school at East Carolina University.

Resident

Organization:

West Virginia University School of Medicine

Department:

Surgery

Classification:

Resident

• MD, The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University

I was born in Florida but raised in Guatemala. I moved with my family to North Carolina and ultimately settled in Charlotte. I earned my undergraduate degree from Wake Forest University and my medical degree from East Carolina University. I am married and have two dogs and two cats. 

What attracted you to WVU Residency?

I looked for academic surgery programs with broad training that had successfully matched into competitive fellowships, as well as graduates going into practice after graduating residency. I loved learning about WVU in my interview and seeing how well surgeons are trained in this program. Taking care of underserved patients has been a passion for me and I felt like WVU would be a good place for me to continue caring for these patients. 

What makes our program unique?

Even though WVU is in a rural area, it has a large catchment that provides exposure to a wide variety of patients. WVU was also the only program that had a Fresh Tissue Training Program. 

What do you like about living in Morgantown?

I like the many food options available and being able to go hiking without traveling too far. 

Awards:

• Research Distinction Track
• Pitt County Care Award 

Professional Societies/Leadership Positions:

• Pitt County Care Clinic – Executive Director
• American College of Surgeons – Resident Membership
• American Medical Association – Resident Membership

Publications:

• Smelser AM, Gomez MM, Smyer S, Pahsayan M, Macosko JC. Stiffness-Tuned Matrices for Tumor Cell Studies. 2017; In A. Skardal, S. Soker (Ed.), Tumor Organoids (pp. 171-191). Totowa: Humana Press. 

Presentations:

• Gomez M, Peine B, Fu Y, Bethea P, Mendes O, Irish W, Akhter S. Surgical Outcomes in Patients with Substance Use Disorder-Associated Endocarditis in a Rural Tertiary Medical Center. Oral presentation. East Carolina University - Department of Cardiovascular Sciences Grand Rounds. (2023, February 22). 
• Gomez MM, Rogers AL, Allman RD, Brea F, Longshore SW, Anciano CJ. Teratoma Treatment with En Bloc Lung Resection and Phrenic Nerve Release in a Child. Eastern Cardiothoracic Surgical Society 2020 Virtual Meeting/Beverly, MA, USA. (2020, October 08).
• Gomez MM, Smelser AM, Holzwarth G. Migration Patterns of MDA-MB-231 in Collagen GMA Gels of Varying Densities [Poster presented]. URECA Research Day/Winston Salem, NC, USA. (2016, August 25).

Personal Interests:

• Houseplants, saltwater aquariums, traveling