- TFOS global ambassadors and international chapter affiliate
Latin America
Victor Perez
Victor Perez graduated from Washington University in 1986 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, and obtained his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine in 1991. Dr. Perez joined Duke Ophthalmology in September 2017
, as Professor of Ophthalmology, and feels Duke provides the perfect environment for clinician
-scientists to grow and establish translational research programs to cure diseases. He is an established clinician-scientist investigator in the field of ocular immunology and ocular surface diseases and will be the Director of Duke Eye Center's newly launched Ocular Immunology Center. Dr. Perez spends sixty percent of his time in his laboratory researching ocular immunology and transplantation. Dr. Perez complements this with his work as Director of the Ocular Surface Program, evaluating and treating patients with ocular inflammatory diseases and conditions of the anterior segment. In addition to ocular surface, he will also manage patients with uveitis, transplantation and diseases of the eye that also have inflammation. Dr. Perez's laboratory focuses primarily on researching immunology of corneal transplantation and ocular Graft vs. Host Disease (GVHD). He and his colleagues use a mouse model of corneal transplantation and Ocular GVHD that allows for translational research relevant to patients with penetrating keratoplasty and ocular GVHD. Dr. Perez's grant from the National Eye Institute supports his lab's work on the immunological mechanisms involved in high-risk corneal transplant rejection and ocular GVHD. The components of Dr. Perez's work support his goal to preserve vision through innovation, personalized medicine, and a passion for advancement of ophthalmic science.