The “human connection” with his patients is vital to Roman Skoracki, MD, the medical director of the Stephanie Spielman Comprehensive Breast Center. “That’s what energizes us, looking someone in the eye and saying ‘I want to do everything I can for you and I will go the extra mile for you,’” he said. In this episode, Skoracki talks about his international background. He was born in Germany, moved with his family to Canada when he was 16, and came to the United States after medical school, where he fell in love with surgery. Skoracki is a leader in microsurgery, a technique in which surgeons can connect blood vessels and nerves as part of reconstructive plastic surgery. He took over as leader of the Spielman from William Farrar, MD, who retired in 2022. Skoracki calls Farrar “an innovator” who built the Spielman into one of the world’s top breast cancer centers. He will continue Farrar’s philosophy of innovation through new surgical techniques, advances in radiation, better imaging to detect breast cancer in its earliest stages, and multiple clinical trials. Current clinical trials include one that utilizes robotic, nipple-sparing surgery for mastectomies; and another that combines chemotherapy and immunotherapy, and could eventually reduce the need for breast surgery in some patients.