Mission Statement

• Outstanding clinical care of patients with liver disease
• Exceptional training of medical professionals
• Cutting-edge laboratory research into basic mechanisms of liver function and disease
• Groundbreaking clinical trials of new drugs and procedures for diagnosing and treating liver disease
• Commitment to community outreach and education about liver disease

Overview

A long history of clinical experience and of outstanding scientific investigation that extends from bench to bedside has made Mount Sinai synonymous throughout the world with the study and treatment of liver disease.

In 1957, the recruitment of Hans Popper, M.D. to Mount Sinai greatly enhanced the study of liver diseases at Mount Sinai and helped propel the Medical Center to international prominence. Universally regarded as “The Father of Modern Hepatology” for his tireless research into liver function and pathology, Dr. Popper’s leadership transformed Mount Sinai into the place for the study and treatment of liver disease.

Mount Sinai's reputation in modern hepatology was built in the 30 years between the creation of the Division of Liver Disease in the late 1950s and Professor Fenton Schaffner's retirement as the first Chief of the Division, in 1988.

Some of the division's seminal contributions include:

• the identification of the clinical and pathophysiologic significance of cholestasis
• recognition of the importance of fibrosis as the final pathway leading from different inciting injuries to a common end result of cirrhosis
• elucidation of the nature of chronic viral infections of the liver
• delineation of the clinical spectrum and natural history of primary biliary cirrhosis
• identification of KLF6 tumor suppressor gene

The division was the leading center in the United States for the first effective new oral therapy for liver cancer. Six members of the division’s faculty have served as President of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

Today, the Division of Liver Diseases is distinguished by its leadership in:

• hepatic fibrosis
• hepatocellular carcinoma
• hepatitis C virus infection
• primary biliary cirrhosis
• liver immunology