Dr. Raju Thomas is the Departmental Chair and Professor of Urology at Tulane University School of Medicine. A graduate from Seth G.S. Medical College of the University of Bombay in India (1974), he completed his residency in general surgery at the University of Illinois in Chicago (1977). After completing his fellowship with the American Urological Association and the National Kidney Foundation (1979-1980) then his residency in urology at Tulane University School of Medicine (1982), he joined the faculty of Tulane’s Department of Urology, receiving his board certification by the American Board of Urology in 1984.
The Residency Program Director for the Department of Urology, as well as the Medical Director of the Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) Training Program and the Urologic Cryosurgery Training Program, Dr. Thomas has dedicated his career to finding minimally invasive therapy alternatives to urologic surgery. With primary interests in endourology, robotics, laparoscopy, lithotripsy, and prostate diseases, Dr. Thomas has pioneered, and developed the principles regarding, several innovative endoscopic and surgical procedures, such as ureteroscopic retrograde endopyelotomy and urological laparoscopy, and he has promoted radical perineal prostatectomy in conjunction with laparoscopy as a minimally morbid alternative for management of prostate cancer. His extensive experience has earned him a place in advanced continuing medical education programs throughout the U.S. and the world, and he has been listed for several years in "Best Doctors in America" and “Best Doctors in New Orleans." Additionally, in 2021, in recognition of his distinguished career of caring for those marginalized by societal inequities, he received the prestigious Spirit of Charity Award from The Spirit of Charity Foundation in New Orleans.
A member of several national and international scientific societies, an author of over 190 scientific articles, abstracts, and book chapters, and a peer reviewer of several urologic journals, Dr. Thomas continues to be on the faculty list for postgraduate courses at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association, an international organization that honored him with the AUA Distinguished Service Award (2016) and the position of AUA President (2021-2022).
