UArizona Sarver Heart Center Welcomes New Faculty

The University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center welcomed three cardiologists who joined the Division of Cardiology: Michel Corban, MD, Craig Hoover, MD, and Saad Kubba, MD; and Robert L. Hooker, MD, who joined the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. All are faculty members of the UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson, Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, and seeing patients at Banner – University Medical Center Tucson.

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Robert L. Hooker, MD

Dr. Hooker is chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, the Sarver Heart Center Jack G. Copeland Endowed Chair of Cardiothoracic Surgery and the Michael Drummond Distinguished Professor of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery. He has nearly 25 years of clinical experience specializing in cardiac, thoracic and transplant surgery. He most recently practiced at Integris Cardiovascular in Oklahoma City.

Dr. Hooker received his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College in New York City. He pursued a research fellowship in small bowel transplantation at the State University of New York in Brooklyn and completed a general surgery residency at The University of Chicago Hospitals. He also completed vascular surgery and cardiothoracic surgery fellowships at Stanford University Hospital in Palo Alto, California.

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Michel Corban, MD

Dr. Corban, an interventional cardiologist and clinical researcher, is a clinical assistant professor of medicine who focuses on treating patients with coronary artery disease that require percutaneous coronary interventions and invasive diagnosis. He specializes in coronary microvascular dysfunction (diseases of the smallest heart vessels), endothelial dysfunction (diseases of the inner cell lining of the heart vessels), and transcatheter interventions for patients with valvular heart disease, such as severe aortic valve stenosis. 

After receiving his medical degree from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon, Dr. Corban completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in interventional cardiology and an internal medicine residency at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He completed fellowship training in cardiovascular disease, interventional cardiology and structural heart disease interventions at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

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Craig Hoover, MD

Dr. Hoover, an interventional cardiologist, was appointed clinical assistant professor of medicine in 1997 after graduating in 1996 from the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program at the UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson. Prior to joining the Sarver Heart Center and Banner, he was a cardiologist in community practice at the Southern Arizona VA Medical Center in Tucson. Dr. Hoover’s research focus is on clinical trials of novel interventional devices and therapies.

He served on the national board of governors of the American College of Cardiology and as governor of the Arizona Chapter of the organization.

Saad Kubba, MD 

Dr. Kubba, an assistant professor, provides general cardiology care and treats patients with complex heart conditions as part of the advanced heart disease and transplant cardiology team and the pulmonary vascular and pulmonary hypertension program.

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His board certifications include the National Board of Echocardiography, Certification Board of Nuclear Cardiology, Certification Board of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography, Registered Physician Vascular Interpreter, American Board of Internal Medicine in Cardiovascular Disease and American Board of Internal Medicine.

A graduate of the UArizona cardiovascular disease fellowship, Dr. Kubba recently completed the advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.

To make an appointment to see these physicians, please call 520-MYHeart (520-694-3278) or 800-524-5928.