Mass Eye and Ear, Massachusetts General Hospital Appoint Mark Varvares, MD, FACS, Chief of the Departments of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery

Boston, Mass. —  Mass Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital, member hospitals of Mass General Brigham, announced yesterday that Mark Varvares, MD, FACS, has been appointed as the next Chief of the Departments of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (OHNS) at Mass Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and as Chair of the Department of OHNS at Harvard Medical School (HMS), following an extensive year-long search process. Dr. Varvares had been actively serving as interim Chief and Chair of the Departments since July 1, 2020. He is a head and neck cancer surgeon and the John W. Merriam/William W. Montgomery Professor of OHNS at HMS.  

Dr. Varvares began his medical career at Mass Eye and Ear as a resident, then clinical fellow, and finally as a young attending where he developed an interest in head and neck reconstructive surgery and helped to establish a head and neck free flap program at Mass Eye and Ear. In 2003 Dr. Varvares moved to St. Louis, accepting a position at Saint Louis University Medical Center (SLU), where he served as Department Chair and Director of the SLU Cancer Center for 12 years.

In 2015, Dr. Varvares returned to Mass Eye and Ear and the MGH as the Associate Chief of OHNS. A committed and compassionate caregiver, he has helped articulate and refine the department’s vision, facilitate programmatic growth, and provide educational and program oversight.  

“We are delighted that Dr. Varvares has accepted this position,” said John Fernandez, President of Mass Eye and Ear. “He is a gifted academic surgeon who will put his superb leadership skills to work, ensuring that Mass Eye and Ear and the MGH remain world-leaders in research and patient care to help cure deafness, head and neck cancer, and other conditions that impede patients’ quality of life.”  

“Anyone who knows Dr. Varvares, understands his deep commitment to our patients, but also to young physicians and surgeons,” said Peter Slavin, MD, President of the MGH.  “He is an outstanding teacher and mentor.”

“I am deeply honored by this appointment,” said Varvares. I hope to lead these Departments and our exceptional OHNS faculty to the highest levels of academic pre-eminence, including research, patient care, teaching and service to our community.”   

About Mass Eye and Ear

Massachusetts Eye and Ear, founded in 1824, is an international center for treatment and research and a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. A member of Mass General Brigham, Mass Eye and Ear specializes in ophthalmology (eye care) and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ear, nose and throat care). Mass Eye and Ear clinicians provide care ranging from the routine to the very complex. Also home to the world's largest community of hearing and vision researchers, Mass Eye and Ear scientists are driven by a mission to discover the basic biology underlying conditions affecting the eyes, ears, nose, throat, head and neck and to develop new treatments and cures. In the 2020–2021 “Best Hospitals Survey,” U.S. News & World Report ranked Mass Eye and Ear #4 in the nation for eye care and #6 for ear, nose and throat care. For more information about life-changing care and research at Mass Eye and Ear, visit our blog, Focus, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. 

About Massachusetts General Hospital

Massachusetts General Hospital, founded in 1811, is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. The Mass General Research Institute conducts the largest hospital-based research program in the nation, with annual research operations of more than $1 billion and comprises more than 9,500 researchers working across more than 30 institutes, centers and departments. In August 2020, Mass General was named #6 in the U.S. News & World Report list of "America’s Best Hospitals."