Dallas County Veterinary Medical Association Inc.

Theresa (Terry) W. Fossum is a Professor of Surgery and holds the Tom and Joan Read Chair in Veterinary Surgery at Texas A&M University. She is a world renowned surgeon and serves as the Director for Cardiothoracic Surgery and Biomedical Devices in the Michael E. DeBakey Institute at TAMU. She was recently appointed Director of the new Texas A & M Institute for Preclinical Studies, a 70 million dollar venture at TAMU which will promote public-private partnerships to speed the development of medical devices and drugs. Dr. Fossum?s leadership was integral in conceptualizing and funding this Institute. Dr. Fossum graduated from Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1982. After completing an internship at Santa Cruz Veterinary Hospital the following year, she went on to do a surgery residency and Master?s degree at the Ohio State University. She received board certification in Surgery (ACVS) in 1987 and joined the faculty at Texas A&M University later that year. In 1992, she completed a PhD in Veterinary Microbiology. Dr. Fossum?s main interests are diseases of the respiratory and cardiovascular system, including cardiopulmonary bypass procedures. Dr. Fossum has authored numerous articles on chylothorax and other respiratory and surgical diseases. She is the principal investigator of numerous research projects including evaluation of the DeBakey Ventricular Assist Device in a calf model, evaluation of angiogenic factors for the treatment of cardiac ischemia, vascular adaptations to hypertension, endothelial dysfunction, and hemorrhagic shock. Dr. Fossum sits on the Board of Directors of the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) and is a member of the Board of Governors for the Foundation for Biomedical Research (FBR). Dr. Fossum is a previous recipient of the Wiley Distinguished Professor of Veterinary Medicine Award and the Carl J. Norden Distinguished Teacher Award at Texas A&M University. In 2004, she received the Texas Society for Biomedical Research Award in recognition and appreciation for her many years of dedicated service to the science, research and medical communities in the State of Texas. Dr Fossum, along with Dr. Michael E. DeBakey, founded the CARE Foundation in 2004 in order to provide an infrastructure for veterinary medicine to perform research using animals with spontaneous disease. The CARE Foundation has developed web-based certification registries for the veterinary profession (www.careanimalfoundation.org). Dr. Fossum serves as President of the organization