“No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens.”

—Michelle Obama

When initially selected to be featured for this project, Jessica Donington, MD, MSCR, humbly responded, “Are you sure you want me? I am very boring!!! You work w/JBM [Jeffrey B. Matthews, MD, FACS, MAMSE], and compared to him I am like your grandma!!!” This exchange, which we considered lighthearted and slightly comical, was a candid glimpse into Dr. Donington’s charming personality—a trait that opens the door to building deep and personal connections within our surgical bionetwork and beyond. Many patients within our community are no strangers to unwelcoming (and sometimes locked) doors, as compassion and solidarity can unfortunately be missing from many operating and/or clinic rooms.

Inside and out of the operating room, Dr. Donington is a bright, accomplished heroine. As the Chief of Thoracic Surgery, not only is she a leader at the University, but also a pioneer in her field. When she first started her career, she was one of few women in the field, so she finds herself in a group of elite women in surgery. Now, reflecting on the current state, she sees the advancement of women in surgery. However, she is cognizant of the work that still needs to be done, which is why she uses her platform to advocate and uplift other female leaders. As a member of the “early wave of women thoracic surgeons,” she is in awe of the progression and their extraordinary contributions to surgery every single day.

She is inspired by the junior faculty in Thoracic Surgery, like newly appointed Darren Bryan, MD, as well as Maria Lucia Madariaga, MD. To witness a transition from trainee to faculty, and to watch them move throughout the operating room with precision, poise and philanthropy induces a deep sense of pride within her soul. “That’s what it’s all about,” Dr. Donington said. “I feel like I am going to cry watching Dr. Bryan and Dr. Madariaga in the OR every day!”

Most of Dr. Donington’s practice involves complex lung cancer cases, and with the nature of her patients, she knows that she is at a disadvantage with the type of disease she is dealing with. To that end, she finds strength in her teammates and loves the collaborative environment, where she can walk into a colleague’s office for advice or even have them scrub in on her case.

Outside of her time in the operating room, Dr. Donington can be found in her garden, preparing decadent homemade jams from scratch or on her bike riding around the city. She also loves spending time with her longtime partner and stunning Bernese mountain dogs.

Dr. Jessica Donington is a pioneer in every sense of the word. Colorful inside and out, and standing tall in a lane of her very own, she continues to amaze us every day with her gumption, passion and leadership.

This is Jessica Donington, Behind the Mask.

Thoracic Surgery

The University of Chicago Medicine Section of Thoracic Surgery is dedicated to quality and innovative care for patients with simple to complex chest diseases. The section’s specialized surgeons are experienced in performing highly technical, minimally invasive procedures to treat and manage conditions affecting the lungs, esophagus, mediastinum and chest wall. The section combines expertise with the latest advancements in molecular medicine, while maintaining a holistic approach that incorporates wellness, patient-centered decision making and individualized treatment.

Jessica Donington, MD, MSCR
Professor of Surgery
Chief, Section of Thoracic Surgery
Learn More & Contact

faculty listing

Professor of Surgery
Jessica Donington, MD, MSCR, Professor of Surgery; Chief, Section of Thoracic Surgery
Mark K. Ferguson, MD, Professor of Surgery; Program Director, Cardiothoracic Fellowship

Associate Professor of Surgery
Darren Bryan, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery
Maria Lucia Madariaga, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery

faculty honors

Jessica Donington, MD, MSCR, was appointed President of the Western Thoracic Surgical Association. She is a new member of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery.

Mark K. Ferguson, MD, was honored with the Richard E. Clark Memorial Paper–Top Paper using STS Database Data. He obtained acupuncture certification and privileges.

Maria Lucia Madariaga, MD, was named a 2022 Butler-Williams Scholar. She passed the Thoracic Surgery boards. She received a Duchossois Family Institute Multidisciplinary Grant for “Human mucosal lymph node compartments as local responders to the microbiome.”

faculty promotions

select publications

Jessica Donington, MD

Diaz A, Bujnowski D, McMullen P, Lysandrou M, Ananthanarayanan V, Husain AN, Freeman R, Vigneswaran WT, Ferguson MK, Donington JS, Madariaga MLL, Abdelsattar ZM. Pulmonary Parenchymal Changes in COVID-19 Survivors. Ann Thorac Surg. 2022 Jul;114(1):301-310. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2021.06.076. Epub 2021 Jul 31. PMID: 34343471; PMCID: PMC8325553.

Amini A, Verma V, Simone CB 2nd, Chetty IJ, Chun SG, Donington J, Edelman MJ, Higgins KA, Kestin LL, Movsas B, Rodrigues GB, Rosenzweig KE, Rybkin II, Slotman BJ, Wolf A, Chang JY. American Radium Society Appropriate Use Criteria for Radiation Therapy in Oligometastatic or Oligoprogressive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2022 Feb 1;112(2):361-375. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2021.09.022. Epub 2021 Sep 25. PMID: 34571054.

Gutiontov SI, Turchan WT, Spurr LF, Rouhani SJ, Chervin CS, Steinhardt G, Lager AM, Wanjari P, Malik R, Connell PP, Chmura SJ, Juloori A, Hoffman PC, Ferguson MK, Donington JS, Patel JD, Vokes EE, Weichselbaum RR, Bestvina CM, Segal JP, Pitroda SP. CDKN2A loss-of-function predicts immunotherapy resistance in non-small cell lung cancer. Sci Rep. 2021 Oct 8;11(1):20059. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-99524-1. PMID: 34625620; PMCID: PMC8501138.

Erwin PA, Lee AC, Ahmad U, Antonoff M, Arndt A, Backhus L, Berry M, Birdas T, Cassivi SD, Chang AC, Cooke DT, Crabtree T, DeCamp M, Donington J, Fernandez F, Force S, Gaissert H, Hofstetter W, Huang J, Kent M, Kim AW, Lin J, Martin LW, Meyerson S, Mitchell JD, Molena D, Odell D, Onaitis M, Puri V, Putnam JB, Reddy R, Schipper P, Seder CW, Shrager J, Tong B, Veeramachaneni N, Watson T, Whyte R, Ferguson MK. Consensus for Thoracoscopic Lower Lobectomy: Essential Components and Targets for Simulation. Ann Thorac Surg. 2021 Oct 21:S0003-4975(21)01746-X. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2021.09.033. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34688617.

Donington J, Schumacher L, Yanagawa J. Surgical Issues for Operable Early-Stage Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2022 Feb 20;40(6):530-538. doi: 10.1200/JCO.21.01592. Epub 2022 Jan 5. PMID: 34985938.

Giuliano K, Ceppa DP, Antonoff M, Donington JS, Kane L, Lawton JS, Sen DG. Women in Thoracic Surgery 2020 Update-Subspecialty and Work-Life Balance Analysis. Ann Thorac Surg. 2022 Mar 23:S0003-4975(22)00370-8. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2022.02.076. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35339440.

Diaz A, Chavez J, Hemmrich M, Smith H, Donington JS, Portugal LG. Large non-functioning substernal parathyroid cyst: A case report and review of the literature. Int J Surg Case Rep. 2022 Apr;93:106989. doi: 10.1016/j.ijscr.2022.106989. Epub 2022 Mar 29. PMID: 35367951; PMCID: PMC8980612.

Lee ACH, Edobor A, Wigakumar T, Lysandrou M, Johnston LK, McMullen P, Mirle V, Diaz A, Piech R, Rose R, Jendrisak M, di Sabato D, Shanmugarajah K, Fung J, Donington J, Madariaga ML. Donor leukocyte trafficking during human ex vivo lung perfusion. Clin Transplant. 2022 Jul;36(7):e14670. doi: 10.1111/ctr.14670. Epub 2022 Apr 18. PMID: 35396887.

Lee ACH, Edobor A, Lysandrou M, Mirle V, Sadek A, Johnston L, Piech R, Rose R, Hart J, Amundsen B, Jendrisak M, Millis JM, Donington J, Madariaga ML, Barth RN, di Sabato D, Shanmugarajah K, Fung J. The Effect of Normothermic Machine Perfusion on the Immune Profile of Donor Liver. Front Immunol. 2022 Jun 2;13:788935. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.788935. PMID: 35720395; PMCID: PMC9201055.

Mark K. Ferguson, MD

D’Journo XB, Boulate D, Fourdrain A, Loundou A, van Berge Henegouwen MI, Gisbertz SS, O’Neill JR, Hoelscher A, Piessen G, van Lanschot J, Wijnhoven B, Jobe B, Davies A, Schneider PM, Pera M, Nilsson M, Nafteux P, Kitagawa Y, Morse CR, Hofstetter W, Molena D, So JB, Immanuel A, Parsons SL, Larsen MH, Dolan JP, Wood SG, Maynard N, Smithers M, Puig S, Law S, Wong I, Kennedy A, KangNing W, Reynolds JV, Pramesh CS, Ferguson M, Darling G, Schröder W, Bludau M, Underwood T, van Hillegersberg R, Chang A, Cecconello I, Ribeiro U Jr, de Manzoni G, Rosati R, Kuppusamy M, Thomas PA, Low DE; International Esodata Study Group. Risk Prediction Model of 90-Day Mortality After Esophagectomy for Cancer. JAMA Surg. 2021 Sep 1;156(9):836-845. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2021.2376. Erratum in: JAMA Surg. 2021 Sep 1;156(9):894. PMID: 34160587; PMCID: PMC8223144.

Lee ACH, Madariaga MLL, Liao C, Ferguson MK. Gender Bias in Judging Frailty and Fitness for Lung Surgery. Ann Thorac Surg. 2021 Dec 10:S0003-4975(21)02038-5. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2021.11.013. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34902299.

Liu L, Zhang J, Ferguson MK, Appelbaum D, Zhang JX, Pu Y. Developing a clinical and PET/CT volumetric prognostic index for risk assessment and management of NSCLC patients after initial therapy. Front Biosci (Landmark Ed). 2022 Jan 12;27(1):16. doi: 10.31083/j.fbl2701016. PMID: 35090321.

van der Wilk BJ, Hagens ERC, Eyck BM, Gisbertz SS, van Hillegersberg R, Nafteux P, Schröder W, Nilsson M, Wijnhoven BPL, Lagarde SM, van Berge Henegouwen MI; International Esodata Study Group Collaborators. Outcomes after totally minimally invasive versus hybrid and open Ivor Lewis oesophagectomy: results from the International Esodata Study Group. Br J Surg. 2022 Feb 24;109(3):283-290. doi: 10.1093/bjs/znab432. PMID: 35024794.

Lee ACH, Tung R, Ferguson MK. Thoracoscopic sympathectomy decreases disease burden in patients with medically refractory ventricular arrhythmias. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg. 2022 May 2;34(5):783-790. doi: 10.1093/icvts/ivab372. PMID: 35015855; PMCID: PMC9070511.

Lee ACH, Ferguson MK. Knowledge of surgical management of hyperhidrosis among primary care physicians and the general public. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg. 2022 May 2;34(5):791-798. doi: 10.1093/icvts/ivab371. PMID: 35015865; PMCID: PMC9070533.

Maria Lucia Madariaga, MD

Agrawal A, Baird BJ, Madariaga MLL, Blair EA, Murgu S. Multi-disciplinary management of patients with benign airway strictures: A review. Respir Med. 2021 Oct;187:106582. doi: 10.1016/j.rmed.2021.106582. Epub 2021 Aug 21. PMID: 34481304.

Otunla AA, Shanmugarajah K, Madariaga ML, Davies AH, Shalhoub J. Chronic Rejection and Atherosclerosis in Post-Transplant Cardiovascular Mortality: Two Sides of the Same Coin. Heart Lung Circ. 2022 Feb;31(2):162-166. doi: 10.1016/j.hlc.2021.09.016. Epub 2021 Nov 27. PMID: 34848149.

Andrew CD, Madariaga MLL, Mathisen DJ, Morse CR, Gaissert HA. Surgical intervention for late gastric conduit obstruction. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2021 Dec 1;60(6):1268-1276. doi: 10.1093/ejcts/ezab318. PMID: 34259860.

residents & fellows

View the Cardiothoracic Residents and Fellows here.