Tarek Malas, MD

Tarek Malas, MD, CM, MPH, FRCSC, is a cardiac surgeon in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery of the Miller Family Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute. Dr. Malas sees patients at Main Campus.

Specialty Interests: Minimally invasive surgery, robotic surgery, percutaneous structural interventions, complex valvular disease, coronary surgery, atrial fibrillation surgery

Experience: Physicians in the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery annually perform more than 5,000 cardiac surgeries. Dr. Malas has extensive experience in cardiac surgery, including minimally invasive, robotic and percutaneous procedures as well as conventional open-heart surgery.

Dr. Malas is a fellow of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons and the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada.

Success Rates: As one of the nation's highest-volume cardiac surgical centers, Cleveland Clinic treats highly complex and critically ill patients, performing procedures that only a handful of surgeons across the country can do. You can view success rates for specific procedures at Learn more about our outcomes and statistics

Education: Dr. Malas earned his medical degree from the Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Canada, and a master’s in public health from Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston. He also completed his undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering at McGill University, Montreal, Canada. He completed a six-year cardiac surgery residency at University of Ottawa Heart Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, where he was selected as chief resident in his final years of training. He continued his training as an advanced adult cardiothoracic surgery fellow at Emory University, Atlanta, and completed his training with a fellowship in advanced minimally invasive, robotic, and structural heart valve surgery at Cleveland Clinic.

Prior to joining the Cleveland Clinic medical staff in 2023, Dr. Malas was a staff cardiac surgeon at Québec Heart and Lung Institute in Quebec, Canada.

Research, Publications and Speaking: Dr. Malas has coauthored research papers published in peer-reviewed cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery journals and cardiothoracic surgery handbooks. He is a frequent presenter at international cardiac surgery meetings and has been an invited lecturer at regional and national medical conferences in the United States and Canada. He also extensive experience in surgical education research and didactic training of residents and fellows.

Dr. Malas currently is a reviewer for numerous academic medical journals, including Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Interactive Cardio-Vascular and Thoracic Surgery and Journal of Robotic Surgery.

About Dr. Malas: “I am very passionate about preventing and treating heart disease so patients can live longer, healthier lives. I find it extremely rewarding to be able to make positive changes in the lives of patients and their loved ones. While it is a very difficult and demanding job, knowing that I am helping make a difference someone’s life makes it worth every moment.

One of the most exciting parts of my specialty is the ability to perform surgery in a variety of ways – percutaneous endovascular, robotic, or standard open-heart surgery. The collaboration between cardiac surgery and cardiology to perform procedures with a minimally invasive approach can help significantly improve recovery times and help patients return to their daily lives quickly with excellent outcomes.”

Leisure Activities: In his leisure time, Dr. Malas enjoys travel and learning languages, scuba diving, tennis, working out at the gym and music.