Leonard Gomella, MD, FACS

American Board of Urology

Dr. Leonard Gomella is the Bernard W. Godwin, Jr. Professor of Prostate Cancer and Chairman of the Department of Urology at Jefferson Medical College. Originally from New York, Dr. Gomella completed medical school, general surgery and urology training at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. After a Urologic Oncology Fellowship in the Surgery Branch of the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, he joined the faculty of Jefferson Medical College in 1988 and was appointed Chair in 2002. He is also Associate Director for Clinical Affairs for the Kimmel Cancer at Jefferson and Urology Chair for RTOG, serving as lead Urology investigator on multiple national trials. In 2008 he was named Clinical Director of the Jefferson Kimmel Cancer Center Network.

Dr. Gomella is involved in both basic science and clinical research in the development of new diagnostic techniques and treatments for prostate, bladder and kidney cancer through Jefferson’s Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Gomella's team was first to use RT-PCR to detect micrometastasis in patients with prostate cancer, a discovery that led to a new field of investigation in this disease. Dr. Gomella is also recognized as an early contributor to urologic laparoscopy, initiating the program at Jefferson in 1990.

He has given almost 500 presentations at local, national and international meetings and written over 300 papers, chapters and monographs in the field of Urology. Journal appointments have included serving on the Editorial Board of the Investigative Section of the Journal of Urology, as co-editor in chief of Techniques in Urology, and on the boards of several journals including Urologic Oncology, Clinical Genitourinary Cancer and American Journal of Pathology. He is a consultant to two dozen journals in the field of urology and oncology and in 2010 was appointed Editor in Chief of the Canadian Journal of Urology.

Dr. Gomella has authored and edited 54 editions of 17 different books for medical students, residents, and practicing physicians, many of which have been translated into foreign languages. He is the editor-in-chief of the 5 Minute Urology Consult, and laparoscopy section editor for Glenn’s Urologic Surgery. Recovering from Prostate Cancer, the first book for the public dedicated to this topic, was authored by Dr. Gomella. In the field of medicine, Dr. Gomella is known for the Clinician's Pocket Reference, now in its 11th edition, a widely used reference for medical students and health care providers.

Best Doctors in America, Top Doctors for Cancer, Philadelphia Magazine’s Top Doctors have recognized him for many years for urologic oncology and prostate cancer. In 2007, Men’s Health Magazine listed Dr. Gomella as one of the 20 top urologists in the US. Awards received have included the American Cancer Society Volunteer Achievement Award and a National Cancer Institute Achievement Award. He has served as President of the Mid-Atlantic Section of the AUA and was elected to membership in the American Association of Genitourinary Surgeons in 2008.The University of Kentucky College of Medicine awarded him an Distinguished Alumnus Award For Academic Excellence in 2009.