As a medical school graduate at UAB in 1985, James E. Bryant, M.D., did not yet know the impact he would make as a skilled urologist and surgeon, Benign Prostatic Hyperlasia (BPH) and kidney stone expert, and teacher of promising young clinicians like himself.
“My father was an anesthesiologist, and so I tried to like anesthesia, but I just fell in love with the operating room, and in particular, urology, early on,” Bryant recalled. "He accepted that, and he thought that urologists were the nicest of all the surgeons,” Bryant joked, “so he was okay with me picking urology.”
Now, after 17 years as a faculty member of the UAB Department of Urology, Bryant will be retiring from his post on Sept. 1, 2025. He will transition to a professor emeritus in the department and continue his work at the Birmingham VA Hospital, but plans to enjoy more time traveling and seeing his new granddaughter.
“UAB has been a great place,” he said. “It has nurtured both my career and my feelings of accomplishment – not only for taking care of patients, but in developing our future urologists, which has been a nice added bonus to my career.”
From trainee to faculty at UAB
Bryant earned his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his medical degree from the UAB School of Medicine in 1985. He completed his residency at UAB in 1990.
Before walking the halls of UAB Hospital, the Little Rock, Arkansas, native worked as an orderly and hospital technician growing up in Mobile, where he was influenced by Bill Cooner, M.D., FACS.
“Bill Cooner, who actually was in private practice, was very active in clinical research, and he got me interested in urology,” Bryant said. “And then in medical school, my interest expanded further, so therefore, I stayed at UAB for my residency.”
From there, Bryant went into private practice at the Norwood Clinic at Carraway Hospital in Birmingham, where he practiced for 18 years before the hospital closed. While in private practice, Bryant kept in contact with mentors like John Burns, M.D., professor emeritus in the UAB Department of Urology.
“When Carraway closed down, it was kind of a perfect storm,” Bryant said. He was offered a job in what was then the UAB Division of Urology in 2008, when Chris Amling, M.D., FACS, served as director.
“There was a kind of a contraction in our faculty over the next several years, so I went from being a general urologist, to literally covering all areas of urology and being very busy surgically, which was great.”
Growing in his career at UAB
Eventually, the faculty went from a period of contraction to expansion, Bryant recalled. Dean Assimos, M.D., professor emeritus in the UAB Department of Urology, became the inaugural chair of the Department when it transitioned from division to department status in 2012.
“I developed not only a working relationship with Dr. Assimos, but a friendship as well,” Bryant said. “We experienced expansion of the faculty, so it further defined my roles, still doing a little bit of everything, be it cancer and prosthetics, stone disease, BPH. But over the last five or six years, I have concentrated more on stone disease and in particular, surgical treatment for BPH enlarged prostate.”
“We've had a significant enlargement of our oncology faculty, which has allowed me to concentrate more on the benign diseases of urology,” he added.
Reflecting on his clinical career, Bryant said a highlight for him was learning a technique called HoLEP (Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate), which is a procedure used to treat BPH.
“That has certainly defined my last six years of being here,” Bryant said.
Another highlight is his time as an educator at UAB. During his tenure, Bryant received the Urology Faculty Teaching Award from residents twice.
“The teaching of the residents is a very enjoyable part of this job,” he said. “One of my favorite parts is hoping to influence not only the careers, but the lives of the residents when they come through. I will miss that part. I will miss the teaching aspects regarding that, and obviously, the friendships and the camaraderie of the faculty.”
Reflections on a career well-spent
Reflecting on his 17 years at UAB and his medical career in general, Bryant said he will miss the everyday interaction with patients, residents, and his fellow faculty members, but ultimately, he hopes to stay connected to the department.
“We have a great department, and it’s getting better,” Bryant said, crediting current department chair Tom Chi, M.D., MBA, with bringing a dynamic energy to the department. “I've already reached out to some of our new faculty, and I think I'll be able to maintain some and develop new friendships, even though I'm not physically present every day.”
The UAB Department of Urology will host a celebration in honor of Bryant on Aug. 8, ahead of Bryant’s last official day at UAB on Sept. 1.
“It's all been very rewarding, but I think I'm ready,” Bryant said.