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UTEP Researcher Named Biomedical Engineering Society Fellow

Last Updated on August 28, 2017 at 12:00 AM

Originally published August 28, 2017

By UC Staff

UTEP Communications

Thomas Boland, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Metallurgical, Materials and Biomedical Engineering at UTEP, is part of the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) Class of 2017 Fellows.

Thomas Boland, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Metallurgical, Materials and Biomedical Engineering

BMES was founded in 1968 and is the professional society for biomedical engineering and bioengineering. Fellow status is awarded to society members who demonstrate exceptional achievements and experience in the field of biomedical engineering.

“It is an incredible distinction,” Boland said. “I think it shows what kind of leadership we have here at UTEP. We’ve made great strides since starting our biomedical engineering programs less than 10 years ago. We are increasing the number of students that go into biomedical engineering and work in the field.”

Boland is the inventor of bioprinting, or live-cell tissue printing, and has been the founder of this field of research. He has received more than $5.5 million in research funding for his work and is the author of more than 70 publications, including three invited reviews and chapters, and has delivered more than 25 invited presentations.

He has co-founded two spinoff companies from his research at UTEP, including TeVido Biodevices, LLC, a company that is commercializing a bioprinted nipple areola complex for breast cancer survivors. 

“Biomedical engineering is one of the fastest growing engineer disciplines and is recognized as one of the futures of engineering,” he said. “It is a combination of medicine and engineering principles to prolong our lives, cure diseases, diagnose and make the work of our doctors easier and better.”

The BMES Class of 2017 Fellows will be recognized at the annual BMES meeting in October in Phoenix.