Cindy J. Kin, MD, MS, FACS, FASCRS
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Stanford University Medical Center
Stanford, California
Why I am a member of ASCRS:
If my immediate colorectal family members are my partners at Stanford, then my extended colorectal family is ASCRS, where I can be sure to find friends, collaborators, mentors and mentees...and happily, that eccentric aunt with all the wisdom, that crazy uncle with all the tricks of the trade, and that goofy but brilliant cousin! I am grateful to be part of this vibrant, evolving, and diverse community, where everyone brings something special to the table.
Why I specialized in colorectal surgery:
I find colorectal surgery to be a very humanizing field. Working with colorectal surgery patients is such an art and they teach us so much—how to really listen and observe, and how to translate that into appropriate treatment (or simply empathy).
I also liked the prospect of enjoying a wide variety of diagnoses, procedures, and patients, while also building a deep expertise about colorectal diseases. In one clinic day, I could see everything from a hemorrhoid in a healthy young person, to cancer in an octogenarian, to inflammatory bowel disease in a middle aged person. In one OR day, I might start off with a couple small anorectal cases and end with a major case involving multiple other surgical services. Yet despite all this variety, I can still be a true expert in this field.
What other field has such breadth and depth? None other than the awesome field of colorectal surgery! (Also, we have a song about us which pretty much sums up the greatness of our field.)