Gaurav Gupta, MD

Biography

Championing and expanding access for patients seeking life-saving kidney care

Among the many roles that Gaurav Gupta, M.D. serves in the field of transplant care, none is more important to him than his work caring for patients in the crucial moments before and after they receive a life-saving kidney.

“That’s what I truly love doing,” says Gupta. “I love seeing the impact a successful kidney transplant can have on a patient.”

He also values his work as mentor and teacher to the next generation of kidney disease and transplant providers, as a researcher conducting groundbreaking studies into how to make more organs available to patients who need them.

Gupta, co-medical director of kidney and pancreas transplantation at VCU Health Hume-Lee Transplant Center, is also chief of the Division of Nephrology. Those positions provide Gupta a seat at the table in guiding patient care at the transplant center. “I enjoy ensuring we’re doing all the right things that we can in caring for our patients,” he says.

He chose a transplant career after treating dialysis patients during medical school in India, an experience where he saw firsthand just how valuable a new organ can be in improving a patient’s quality of life and long-term prognosis.

Gupta evaluates candidates for transplants, making sure they’re a match for an organ that can lead them to better health. He treats them with medications following the procedure to ensure their immune system doesn’t reject their new organ. And he also treats patients for various medical conditions that are among the leading causes of declining kidney health.   

He brings a deep knowledge of kidney care to his medical practice and has treated tens of thousands of patients over the course of his career.

Even with that experience, he also knows that constant learning is a requirement in the fast-evolving field of kidney care. In addition to keeping on top of the latest treatments, Gupta continues to gain insights in his day-to-day interactions with colleagues and patients.

“Medicine is as an art as much as it is a science,” he says. “Every patient and every new thing I see helps me learn something new.”

And research is a big part of his focus. He is authoring a body of research on how to increase the supply of available kidneys for donation. As part of that, he has led a series of studies that are looking at ways to reduce the number of kidneys that get discarded by using organs from deceased donors with hepatitis C and/or HIV for transplants. He also leads a research group called Kidney Disease and Transplantation Epidemiology or KiTE that has lofty goals to change the landscape for kidney care.

Gupta is quick to note that transplant care involves a team effort that includes specialists from across the medical profession. And he knows each patient is a key part of their own care team. He wants each of them to know that he is there to guide and support them on the road to better health.

“The number one thing I want to bring to the table is compassion,” he says. “I want all my patients to understand I am there for them, and I will be their champion.”

Advice to Patients

“Be engaged in your health care. Be informed about what you need and about what you are coming to the doctor for. Engaged patients have better outcomes.”

Research Interests

Reducing the incidence of discarded kidneys, preventing rejection of newly transplanted kidneys, increasing longevity of donated kidneys.