Prof. Jean De Ville De Goyet is Senior Consultant in Pediatric Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery and Pediatric Liver Transplantation at IRCCS ISMETT-UPMC, where he previously served as Director of the Department of Pediatric Abdominal Surgery.

Widely regarded as one of the world’s leading experts in his field, he is best known for developing the MesoRex bypass technique in 1992—an innovative surgical procedure that restores physiological portal blood flow in children affected by portal vein cavernoma or extrahepatic portal vein obstruction. This complex surgery is performed in only a few centers worldwide and has revolutionized the therapeutic approach to these rare and severe conditions, cementing Prof. De Ville De Goyet’s reputation as an internationally renowned surgeon and visionary innovator.

After earning his Medical Degree from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, he completed his training in Paris and Brussels, developing an early interest in pediatric transplantation and acquiring advanced expertise in split liver and living donor transplant techniques. He later moved to Birmingham, United Kingdom, where he helped establish one of Europe’s first centers dedicated to pediatric liver and intestinal transplantation, also expanding his experience in managing intestinal failure. Upon returning to Brussels, he organized and led the Department of Abdominal Surgery and Transplantation at Cliniques Saint-Luc, and held the Chair of Pediatric Surgery at the Catholic University of Louvain.

In 2007, he relocated to Italy to head the Department of Surgery and the Transplant Center at the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital in Rome, where over a decade he built a new pediatric transplant program that achieved exceptional outcomes—with a 96% seven-year survival rate, a performance matched by only a few centers worldwide. From 2009 to 2016, he also served as Director of the School of Specialization in Pediatric Surgery at the University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, where he trained multiple generations of surgeons.

Throughout his career, Prof. De Ville De Goyet has performed over 800 transplants, published more than 270 scientific papers, and is recognized internationally as one of the foremost authorities in the treatment of pediatric liver and vascular diseases.

Dr. De Ville graduated in 1980 from the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium, with laude and mention of honors. Since 2009 he is also Director of the School of Specialization of the University of Rome Tor Vergata.