Former Dean of UCI School of Medicine Ralph V. Clayman Receives the Keyes Medal

Ralph V. Clayman, MD, PhD, distinguished professor and endowed chair in endourology in the Department of Urology and dean emeritus of the UCI School of Medicine, received the Keyes Medal, the highest honor from the American Association of Genitourinary Surgeons (AAGUS). He received this award at a ceremony held March 17 at the Omni Amelia Island Resort in Amelia Island, Fla.

Clayman is an internationally respected urologist who is renowned for his expertise in minimally invasive surgery for kidney stone disease, kidney cancer and strictures of the ureter. He is listed among the Best Doctors in America® for Urology and pioneered minimally invasive surgical techniques that have revolutionized treatment for diseases of the kidney and urinary tract.

Clayman performed the world's first removal of a tumor-bearing kidney through a small incision using a laparoscope. He also perfected the use of cryotherapy to treat renal cancer, as well as other less invasive methods to improve patient outcomes. He has invented more than two dozen devices for performing minimally invasive surgery and has published more than 450 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

Clayman joined the UCI School of Medicine in 2002 as chair and professor of the then newly formed Department of Urology. During his seven years as chair, the UCI Medical Center's urology program came to be ranked among the top 20 programs in the country by U.S. News and World Report. He then became the dean of the UCI School of Medicine in 2009. After a 5-year term as dean, he elected to return to the Department of Urology as a professor with a specialty in kidney stones and upper urinary tract obstruction. He is now immersed in his clinical and research work in kidney stones and ureteral and renal obstruction, while also working closely with urology residents, as well as endourology fellows and students.

The AAGUS is an association of 75 elected active members selected from academic urologists from the U.S. and Canada, dedicated to the study of diseases of the genitourinary system. The Keyes Medal, named after Edward L. Keyes, MD, the association’s founder, is presented to an individual for their “outstanding contributions in the advancement of urology.” It is recognized as the greatest individual citation in the specialty and has been awarded sparingly over the past 90 years.