Academic Debate

The Academic Debate, a signature event at TLM, brings together teams from various institutions to deliberate on critical and controversial topics within the field.

The 2025 Academic Debate 
Topic: Use of Machine Perfusion and Living Donor Grafts for Adults Awaiting Liver Transplant
Question: Is there a role for living donor liver transplant in adult patients in the age of machine perfusion?

Selected participants will be able to present their perspectives in front of a global audience of peers, mentors, and influencers, fostering academic discourse and professional growth. Learn more below! 

AASLD is excited to announce that applications are now open to participate in the highly anticipated Academic Debate at the annual Liver Meeting® (TLM) in Washington, D.C. This is a unique opportunity for hepatology professionals to showcase their expertise, engage in spirited discussion, and contribute to advancing the field of liver disease.

• Submit one (1) online application per team by Friday, August 29^th.
• Submit a two-minute audition video of a debate with a fun topic of your choosing. It does not need to be liver-related.

• Two (2) Fellows-in-Training with at least one (1) fellow in a Transplant Hepatology fellowship, including traditional fourth-year fellows and/or GI/TH dual certification fellows.
• One (1) Faculty Mentor who will serve as the onsite mentor (on stage) with the fellows and serve as primary contact.
• To provide institutions with more opportunities, AASLD will not accept applications from institutions that have had a team in the Debates in the past two years (2023-2024). Visit the Academic Debates webpage on The Liver Meeting site to see if your institution is eligible.   
• All selected teams and their participants must attend the Academic Debates in person at The Liver Meeting® on Saturday, November 8th, 3:45 – 4:45 PM in Washington, D.C.

UT Southwestern
Ashwini Arvind, MBBS
Mohammad Amin Fallahzadeh, MD, MPH

2023

• Montefiore Medical Center 
• University California Los Angeles (UCLA)

2022

• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Drs. Patrick Campbell and Sasha Deutsch-Link; Mentor: Neil Shah)
• University of Florida (Drs. Media Ismael and Calvin Kiani; Mentor: Dr. Virginia Clark)
• California Pacific Medical Center (Drs. Frances Lee and Ann Robinson; Mentor: Dr. Todd Frederick)
• UPMC (Drs. Nabeeha Mohyuddin and Alan Noll; Mentor: Naudia Jonassaint)