Alumni Profile:

Cardiac surgeon Cheung, '81, takes time to give back

By Darla Brown

Edson Cheung, M.D.,’81, R ’87, has a long history of philanthropic giving to The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He has endowed two scholarships – one to honor his father-in-law, Daniel H. Lam, who helped make it possible for him attend medical school, and the other in the name of former Medical School registrar Betty Murphy.

Now, along with his best friend from his general surgical residency, David Van Buren, M.D., R ’87, Dr. Cheung is planning a fund-raising venture to honor a mentor from those formative residency days – James “Red” Duke, Jr., M.D.

The two former residency buddies were vacationing together last summer in Lake Tahoe when they hatched the plan.

“We were talking about our medical practices and who influenced us and the way we treat patients, and Dr. Duke kept coming up,” Dr. Cheung recalls. “Dr. Duke has been a mentor to me and so many Medical School students – it’s time we gave something back to him since he has done so much for so many.”



Dr. Duke has been a member of the Department of Surgery since 1972 and holds the John B. Holmes Professorship in the Clinical Sciences.

“He represents the beginning of the surgery department and he is the face of medicine in Houston, so it will be a fitting tribute to raise funds to further the education of surgical residents and Medical School students in Dr. Duke’s name,” Dr. Cheung explains.

Drs. Cheung and Van Buren are planning to raise at least $200,000 to endow a scholarship for a Medical School student and a general surgery residency fund.
“Dr. Duke was very committed to residency training throughout my tenure at UT-Houston, and he remains so. When I came back to the graduate dinner in the early 1990s, Dr. Duke had committed to take trauma call every third night to support the residents,” says Dr. Van Buren, who also did a fellowship in organ transplantation at UT after graduating from the surgery residency program.

It is that dedication that Drs. Van Buren and Cheung want to honor with scholarships in Dr. Duke’s name.

“He was in his 60s and still so supportive of residents. I was certain at that time that I was going to do something to support Dr. Duke. Dr. Cheung and I want to do something for him before he retires,” says Dr. Van Buren, who is a clinical associate professor of surgery, renal transplantation, at Texas Tech Covenant Medical Center.

Dr. Cheung, who is a cardiac surgeon at Baylor University Medical Center Dallas, came to the United States from Hong Kong in 1972 at the age of 17 to attend college at the University of Houston.

“For a kid like me from Hong Kong, Dr. Duke was so fascinating – the quintessential Texan. He exemplifies the caring doctor that is not common anymore – the one who listens and takes care of the patient no matter what,” Dr. Cheung says.

Dr. Cheung says he recalls doing rounds with Dr. Duke as a surgical resident in the middle of the night, and Dr. Duke would always make the patients feel better.
“I remember one patient who complained about the hospital food, and Dr. Duke had me order him steak and eggs in the middle of the night – that’s just the kind of caring doctor he is,” Dr. Cheung says.

This compassionate nature is also part of Dr. Cheung’s personality. Having given two endowed scholarships to support Medical School students, he is the school’s most prolific alumni donor.

“I think it was just the way I was brought up. When people are good to you, you pay them back – it’s a cultural thing,” he says, adding that he has endowed a scholarship at the University of Houston and started a charitable foundation at Baylor University Medical Center Dallas, where he practices with fellow UT alumni, Carl Henry, III, M.D., ‘74, and Robert Hebeler, M.D., R, ‘82.

“The Medical School appreciates Dr. Cheung’s generosity and looks to our alumni and friends to help ease the burden of medical school debt for deserving students,” says Keri Valdes, associate director of development for the Medical School. “The Dr. Duke scholarships are a great way for alumni and others to not only show their appreciation of Dr. Duke but to help the next generation of physicians.”

The national median for medical student indebtedness upon graduation from public schools is $100,000. As tuition increases continue, it is projected that this indebtedness will increase to $120,000 for those who graduate from medical school in 2007.

To contribute to the Dr. Duke effort, or for more information, please contact Keri Valdes, 713-500-5065, or keri.valdes@uth.tmc.edu