WVU faculty member credits high school program with helping him on journey from coal country to operating room

Growing up in rural McDowell County, West Virginia, Nicholas Baker, MD, FACS, associate professor of thoracic surgery with the West Virginia University School of MedicineDepartment of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery and the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute, saw few options for his future.

"There weren't a lot of options in McDowell County," he said. "It was pretty much drive a coal truck or go to college."

Encouraged by his mother, Dr. Baker chose college. A decision that would lead him to medical school, then robotic thoracic surgery, and eventually back to his home state.

As a teenager in Iaeger, West Virginia, Baker joined the Health Sciences and Technology Academy (HSTA), a statewide mentoring program that supports high school students interested in science, engineering and medicine.

"The Health Sciences and Technology Academy was a big part of my life as a high school student," Baker said. "We did research projects and a summer program here in Morgantown. It gave me access to opportunities I never had in McDowell County."

The experience, he said, set his sights on the WVU School of Medicine, where he earned his medical degree before pursuing advanced training in Charleston, W.Va, Pittsburgh and New York.

Baker spent more than a decade at the University of Pittsburgh, where he became director of robotic thoracic surgery. But his goal was always to return home.

In August 2024, he joined the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute, specializing in minimally invasive lung and esophageal cancer surgery. One of his first stops after returning to campus was reconnecting with HSTA.

"Being able to come back, finding HSTA was one of the first things I did," Baker said. "I was able to take high school students into our simulation lab here at the Health Sciences Center. They got to go hands-on with the Da Vinci robot. That was an awesome feeling -- being able to come full circle."

The simulation experience, including with Da Vinci robot that assists with surgery techniques, took place at WV STEPS David and Jo Ann Shaw Center for Simulation Training and Education for Patient Safety, where students practice using the same technology Baker operates with daily.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in West Virginia. Despite widespread eligibility, only about 5% of West Virginians receive life-saving screenings, according to the WVU Cancer Institute.

To close the gap, WVU launched LUCAS, a 48-foot mobile screening unit that travels across the state providing free, low-dose Computed Tomography (CT) scans. Baker said the program helps bring advanced care directly to the people who need it most.

"West Virginia has done a very good job in lung cancer screening by creating the LUCAS bus that travels through rural communities," Baker said. "Nationally, we're on par with the rest of the country, which isn't always the case with other health outcomes. But here, we're keeping pace."

For Baker, the return home is about more than providing clinical care, it's about inspiring students from small towns who may doubt their potential.

"You don't have to come from a background of physicians or have a huge launch pad of support from your family," he said. "There are plenty of programs in West Virginia that can help anybody get to where they want to be, as long as they put in the work."

His own path, from HSTA student to WVU medical graduate to national surgical leader, is proof of that.

"WVU, as a state institution, wants to see West Virginians thrive," Baker said. "That's what brought me here, and that's what I want to give back."

Watch the video of Dr. Baker.

-WVU

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CONTACT: Ally Kennedy
Senior Communications Specialist
Health Sciences and WVU School of Medicine
[email protected]