Dr. Piotr Witkowski, MD/PhD

Dr. Piotr Witkowski is a transplant surgeon at the University of Chicago who has directed his own laboratory there since 2009. He specializes in minimally invasive pancreatic islet transplantation aimed at restoring insulin independence for people with type 1 diabetes. In a 2021 perspective published in Frontiers in Endocrinology, he was lead author arguing that islets be reclassified for regulatory purposes. His case is that current FDA policy has stalled access to islet transplantation in the United States, and he has campaigned for legislative fixes including the ISLET Act. His laboratory has optimized production of ex vivo expanded regulatory T cells. That therapy is intended to reduce or eliminate toxic anti-rejection drugs and induce immune tolerance in transplant recipients and in autoimmune conditions including type 1 diabetes.

Affiliation

Islet Transplant Surgeon, University of Chicago

Location

Chicago, Illinois, U.S.