Hume-Lee Celebrates 60 Years

Left: H.M. Lee, M.D., and David Hume, M.D. / March 12, 2002, The Transplant Center Lee directed for two decades, which opened in 1964 and is now the oldest transplant unit in the United States, was re-designated and officially named The Hume-Lee Transplant Center.

It’s a banner year for the VCU Health Hume-Lee Transplant Center. The transplant program at VCU—formerly the Medical College of Virginia—was once one of only three such programs in the U.S. In 1957, it was the site for Virginia’s first kidney transplant.

The center is named after pioneering MCV transplant physicians David Hume, M.D., and H.M. Lee, M.D. Accomplishments at the center also include Virginia’s first liver transplant, one of the world’s first tissue-typing labs, and Virginia’s first vascular-access program. In May, the center completed its 5,000th transplant.

A 60th Anniversary Celebration for the VCU Health Hume-Lee Transplant Center will take place on Sat., Dec. 2 at 6 p.m., at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.