Michael Cain, MD

Assistant Professor, Surgery-Cardiothoracic


FacultyPhoto
Medical School
  • MD, Medical College of Wisconsin (2015)
Undergraduate School
  • BSc (Hons), University of Wisconsin–Madison (WI) (2010)
Residency
  • Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals Program, Surgery (2020)
Fellowships
  • University of Colorado, Thoracic and Cardiac (2023)
Languages
English
Department
Surgery-Cardiothoracic

Research Interests

I have research interests which mirror my clinical focus, with an emphasis on investigating the impact of normothermic regional perfusion on heart and lung transplantation, evaluating the impact of right ventricular dysfunction in patients supported on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and the use of temporary ventricular assist devices for cardiogenic shock. Additionally, I have an interest in the investigating the roll of 4D flow cardiac MRI imaging in improving the evaluation of patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.

Publications

  • Suarez-Pierre A, Iguidbashian J, Kirsch MJ, Cain MT, Aftab M, Reece TB, Fullerton DA, Rove JY, Cleveland JC Jr, Hoffman JRH. Association of cardiac preservation solution with short-term outcomes after heart transplantation. J Cardiovasc Med (Hagerstown). 2024 Feb 1;25(2):158-164. PubMed PMID: 38149702
  • Cain MT, Schäfer M, Park S, Barker AJ, Vargas D, Stenmark KR, Yu YA, Bull TM, Ivy DD, Hoffman JRH. Characterization of pulmonary arterial stiffness using cardiac MRI. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2023 Oct 30. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 37902921
  • Dindi K, Cain MT, Odera A, Joyce DL, Joyce LD, Leta A, White RE. Building cardiac surgical programs in lower-middle income countries. JTCVS Open. 2023 Mar;13:252-259. PubMed PMID: 37063137
  • Cain MT, Joyce DL, Szabo A, Wu R, Kohmoto T, Joyce LD, Pearson PJ. Reduced Morbidity and Mortality Associated With Minimally Invasive Single-vessel Coronary Artery Bypass Compared With Conventional Sternotomy. Ann Surg. 2023 May 1;277(5):e1176-e1183. PubMed PMID: 35797604
  • Cain MT, Park SY, Schäfer M, Hay-Arthur E, Justison GA, Zhan QP, Campbell D, Mitchell JD, Randhawa SK, Meguid RA, David EA, Reece TB, Cleveland JC Jr, Hoffman JRH. Lung recovery utilizing thoracoabdominal normothermic regional perfusion during donation after circulatory death: The Colorado experience. JTCVS Tech. 2023 Dec;22:350-358. PubMed PMID: 38152164
  • Cain MT, Joyce D, Lahr BD, Day CN, Sandhu GS, Kushwaha S, Joyce LD. Do Right Heart Hemodynamic Improvements Persist After Pulmonary Thromboendarterectomy?. Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2022 Spring;34(1):80-89. PubMed PMID: 33691188
  • Cain MT, Reece TB. Commentary: Antegrade cerebral perfusion versus retrograde cerebral perfusion: If only it was that easy. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2023 Aug;166(2):407-408. PubMed PMID: 34556358
  • Smith NJ, Park S, Zundel MT, Dong H, Szabo A, Cain MT, Durham LA 3rd. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for COVID-19: An evolving experience through multiple waves. Artif Organs. 2022 Nov;46(11):2257-2265. PubMed PMID: 35957490
  • Ramamurthi A, Cain MT, Smith N, Espinal A, Joyce DL, Mohammed A, Joyce LD, Durham LA. Transcarotid Approach to Placement of an Impella 5.0. ASAIO J. 2022 Jan 1;68(1):e12-e15. PubMed PMID: 33741787
  • Cain MT, Smith NJ, Barash M, Simpson P, Durham LA 3rd, Makker H, Roberts C, Falcucci O, Wang D, Walker R, Ahmed G, Brown SA, Nanchal RS, Joyce DL. Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation with Right Ventricular Assist Device for COVID-19 ARDS. J Surg Res. 2021 Aug;264:81-89. PubMed PMID: 33789179
  • Schurman AM, Cain MT, Joyce DL, Durham LA, Ishizawar D, Mohammed A, Joyce LD. Minimally Invasive Mechanical Circulatory Support Through the Perioperative Pulmonary Thromboendarterectomy Period: A Case Report. Innovations (Phila). 2020 Mar Apr;15(2):173-176. PubMed PMID: 32352901
  • Badu B, Cain MT, Durham LA 3rd, Joyce LD, Sundararajan S, Gaglianello N, Ishizawar D, Saltzberg M, Mohammed A, Joyce DL. A Dual-Lumen Percutaneous Cannula for Managing Refractory Right Ventricular Failure. ASAIO J. 2020 Aug;66(8):915-921. PubMed PMID: 32740352
  • Smith NJ, Miles B, Cain MT, Joyce LD, Pearson P, Joyce DL. Minimally invasive single-vessel left internal mammary to left anterior descending artery bypass grafting improves outcomes over conventional sternotomy: A single-institution retrospective cohort study. J Card Surg. 2019 Sep;34(9):788-795. PubMed PMID: 31269282
  • Greaves SW, Dye L 3rd, Aranda PS, Cain MT, Haasler GB, Almassi GH, Pagel PS, Kreibich M, Beyersdorf F, Elefteriades JA. Perioperative Management of a Large Idiopathic Pulmonary Artery Aneurysm Without Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth. 2018 Oct;32(5):2402-2408. PubMed PMID: 29887125
  • Pagel PS, Hendrix WA, Cain MT, Ali AKY, Muscato G, Mungara C, Rokkas C. Unexpected Findings in a Man with a Repaired Type A Aortic Dissection and a New Stroke. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth. 2018 Oct;32(5):2451-2454. PubMed PMID: 29331553
  • Cain MT, Cao Y, Ghanayem NS, Simpson PM, Trapp K, Mitchell ME, Tweddell JS, Woods RK. Transposition of the great arteries--outcomes and time interval of early neonatal repair. World J Pediatr Congenit Heart Surg. 2014 Apr;5(2):241-7. PubMed PMID: 24668972
  • Taff HT, Nett JE, Zarnowski R, Ross KM, Sanchez H, Cain MT, Hamaker J, Mitchell AP, Andes DR. A Candida biofilm-induced pathway for matrix glucan delivery: implications for drug resistance. PLoS Pathog. 2012;8(8):e1002848. PubMed PMID: 22876186
  • Nett JE, Sanchez H, Cain MT, Ross KM, Andes DR. Interface of Candida albicans biofilm matrix-associated drug resistance and cell wall integrity regulation. Eukaryot Cell. 2011 Dec;10(12):1660-9. PubMed PMID: 21666076
  • Nett JE, Cain MT, Crawford K, Andes DR. Optimizing a Candida biofilm microtiter plate model for measurement of antifungal susceptibility by tetrazolium salt assay. J Clin Microbiol. 2011 Apr;49(4):1426-33. PubMed PMID: 21227984
  • Nett JE, Sanchez H, Cain MT, Andes DR. Genetic basis of Candida biofilm resistance due to drug-sequestering matrix glucan. J Infect Dis. 2010 Jul 1;202(1):171-5. PubMed PMID: 20497051
  • Cain MT, Schäfer M, Ivy DD, Mitchell MB, Fenster BE, Bull TM, Barker AJ, Vargas D, Hoffman JRH. 4D-Flow MRI Intracardiac Flow Analysis Can Phenotype Diastolic Dysfunction Among Different Subtypes of Pulmonary Hypertension. Pulmonary circulation. 2023;13:e12307. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/pul2.12307
  • Cain MT, Taylor LJ, Colborn K, Teman NR, Hoffman J, Mayer KP, Etchill EW, Sevin CM, Jaishankar S, Ramanan R, Enfield K, Zwischenberger JB, Jolley SE, Rove JY. Worse Survival in Patients with Right Ventricular Dysfunction and COVID-19 Associated ARDS Requiring ECMO: A Multicenter Study from the ORACLE Group. Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtcvs.2022.12.013
  • Bush EL, Cain MT. 2023 WTSA Annual Meeting Discussion to: Lung Recovery Utilizing Thoracoabdominal Normothermic Regional Perfusion During Donation After Circulatory Death: The Colorado Experience. JTCVS Techniques. October 02, 2023 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjtc.2023.09.029
  • Cain MT, Firstenberg MS, Cleveland JC. Heart Transplant and Ventricular Assist: Cardiac Surgery and Heart Failure Perspective. US Cardiology Review. 2021; 15:e16 https://doi.org/10.15420/usc.2021.11
  • Cain MT, Reece TB. Commentary: Antegrade cerebral perfusion versus retrograde cerebral perfusion: If only it was that easy. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2023 Aug;166(2):407-408. PubMed PMID: 34556358
  • Cain MT, Joyce DL, Szabo A, Wu R, Kohmoto T, Joyce LD, Pearson PJ. Reduced Morbidity and Mortality Associated With Minimally Invasive Single-vessel Coronary Artery Bypass Compared With Conventional Sternotomy. Ann Surg. 2023 May 1;277(5):e1176-e1183. PubMed PMID: 35797604
  • Cain MT, Taylor LJ, Colborn K, Teman NR, Hoffman J, Mayer KP, Etchill EW, Sevin CM, Jaishankar S, Ramanan R, Enfield K, Zwischenberger JB, Jolley SE, Rove JY. Worse survival in patients with right ventricular dysfunction and COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: A multicenter study from the ORACLE Group. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2024 May;167(5):1833-1841.e2. PubMed PMID: 36717346
  • Dindi K, Cain MT, Odera A, Joyce DL, Joyce LD, Leta A, White RE. Building cardiac surgical programs in lower-middle income countries. JTCVS Open. 2023 Mar;13:252-259. PubMed PMID: 37063137
  • Cain MT, Schäfer M, Park S, Barker AJ, Vargas D, Stenmark KR, Yu YA, Bull TM, Ivy DD, Hoffman JRH. Characterization of pulmonary arterial stiffness using cardiac MRI. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2024 Feb;40(2):425-439. PubMed PMID: 37902921
  • Cain MT, Schäfer M, Ross LK, Ivy DD, Mitchell MB, Fenster BE, Bull TM, Barker AJ, Vargas D, Hoffman JRH. 4D-Flow MRI intracardiac flow analysis considering different subtypes of pulmonary hypertension. Pulm Circ. 2023 Oct;13(4):e12307. PubMed PMID: 37941938
  • Suarez-Pierre A, Iguidbashian J, Kirsch MJ, Cain MT, Aftab M, Reece TB, Fullerton DA, Rove JY, Cleveland JC Jr, Hoffman JRH. Association of cardiac preservation solution with short-term outcomes after heart transplantation. J Cardiovasc Med (Hagerstown). 2024 Feb 1;25(2):158-164. PubMed PMID: 38149702
  • Cain MT, Park SY, Schäfer M, Hay-Arthur E, Justison GA, Zhan QP, Campbell D, Mitchell JD, Randhawa SK, Meguid RA, David EA, Reece TB, Cleveland JC Jr, Hoffman JRH. Lung recovery utilizing thoracoabdominal normothermic regional perfusion during donation after circulatory death: The Colorado experience. JTCVS Tech. 2023 Dec;22:350-358. PubMed PMID: 38152164
  • Bakhtiyar SS, Maksimuk TE, Gutowski J, Park SY, Cain MT, Rove JY, Reece TB, Cleveland JC Jr, Pomposelli JJ, Bababekov YJ, Nydam TL, Schold JD, Pomfret EA, Hoffman JRH. Association of procurement technique with organ yield and cost following donation after circulatory death. Am J Transplant. 2024 Oct;24(10):1803-1815. PubMed PMID: 38521350
  • Rove JY, Cain MT, Hoffman JR, Reece TB. Noteworthy in Cardiothoracic Surgery 2023. Semin Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth. 2024 Jun;28(2):100-105. PubMed PMID: 38631341
  • Bakhtiyar SS, Maksimuk TE, Cain MT, Hoffman JRH. Comment on: Characteristics and outcomes of lung transplants performed with ex-situ lung perfusion. J Heart Lung Transplant. 2024 Sep;43(9):1525-1526. PubMed PMID: 38735422
  • Cotton JL, Makinen J, Park SY, Halpern Mungo A, Aftab M, Hoffman JRH, Cain MT. Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection, Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy, and Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Pregnancy. Innovations (Phila). 2024 Jul-Aug;19(4):446-448. PubMed PMID: 38828949
  • Hoffman JRH, Hartwig MG, Cain MT, Rove JY, Siddique A, Urban M, Mulligan MS, Bush EL, Balsara K, Demarest CT, Silvestry SC, Wilkey B, Trahanas JM, Pretorius VG, Shah AS, Moazami N, Pomfret EA, Catarino PA. Consensus Statement: Technical Standards for Thoracoabdominal Normothermic Regional Perfusion. Transplantation. 2024 Aug 1;108(8):1669-1680. PubMed PMID: 39012953
  • Hoffman JRH, Hartwig MG, Cain MT, Rove JY, Siddique A, Urban M, Mulligan MS, Bush EL, Balsara K, Demarest CT, Silvestry SC, Wilkey B, Trahanas JM, Pretorius VG, Shah AS, Moazami N, Pomfret EA, Catarino PA. Consensus Statement: Technical Standards for Thoracoabdominal Normothermic Regional Perfusion. Ann Thorac Surg. 2024 Oct;118(4):778-791. PubMed PMID: 39023462

Professional Memberships

  • Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Candidate Member
  • International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, Associate Member
  • Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society - Colorado Chapter, Member
  • Western Thoracic Surgical Association, Candidate Residency

Practice Locations

UCHealth Thoracic Surgery - Anschutz Medical Campus
1665 Aurora Court
Anschutz Cancer Pavilion, 3rd Floor
Aurora, CO 80045
303-724-2799

UCHealth Transplant Center - Anschutz Medical Campus
1635 Aurora Ct
7th Floor
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0005

UCHealth Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion - Anschutz Medical Campus
12605 E. 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0000

UCHealth Anschutz Outpatient Pavilion - Anschutz Medical Campus
1635 Aurora Ct
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0000

UCHealth Heart & Vascular Center - Anschutz
12505 E. 16th Ave
Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion 2, 3rd floor
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-5300

UCHealth Transplant Surgery - Anschutz Medical Campus
1635 Aurora Ct
7th Floor
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0833

Hospital Affiliation
  • University of Colorado Hospital
  • Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Specialty Information

Specialties
  • Surgery, Board Certification (2020, 2023)
  • Thoracic and Cardiac, Board Certification (2023, 2024)
Conditions & Treatments
  • Heart and Circulation
  • Heart and Circulation - Structural Heart Disease
  • Heart and Circulation - Heart Failure
  • Heart and Circulation - Circulatory Disorders
  • Surgery - Transplant Surgery
  • Surgery
  • Surgery - Cardiothoracic Surgery
  • Surgery - Adult Cardiac Surgery
  • Surgery - Heart Transplant Surgery
  • Surgery - Lung Transplant Surgery
Clinical Interests
I have a clinical focus on advanced heart and lung disease, including mechanical circulatory support and left ventricular assist device implantation, minimally invasive approaches to mechanical circulatory support, heart and lung transplantation, and surgical management of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). In addition to these focuses, I provide the full spectrum of adult cardiac care at the University of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center and care for patients with coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, arrhythmias including atrial fibrillation, as well as thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissection.

Care Philosophy
I am part of a world class multidisciplinary team focused on providing the best care for patients with advanced forms of heart and lung disease. I am driven to provide excellent care through tailored surgical approaches to each unique patient and believe strongly that shared decision making is important to achieve the best outcomes for my patients.