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Paula A Ugalde Figueroa

Paula A Ugalde Figueroa, MD

Thoracic Surgery

Mass General Brigham

Highlights

Age Groups Seen

  • Adults
  • Geriatrics

Languages

  • English

Gender

Female

About Paula A Ugalde Figueroa

Dr. Paula Ugalde Figueroa graduated from the medical school of the Federal University of Bahia in Salvador, BA, Brazil. She did her general surgical residency at Santo Antônio Hospital-Irmã Dulce, a university-affiliated hospital also in Salvador, and her thoracic surgery residency at Santa Casa da Misericórdia Hospital in Porto Alegre RS, Brazil. Additionally, she did postdoctoral research at Santa Casa da Misericórdia Hospital and the Federal University of Bahia and obtained a master’s degree in Internal Medicine in 2004. She was an assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Pneumology at the Federal University of Bahia Medical School from 2001 to 2005. From 2005 to 2007, Dr. Ugalde did a clinical fellowship in thoracic surgery at Centre de Pneumologie et de Chirurgie Thoracique Hôpital Laval in Quebec, Canada. In the 2007-2008 academic year, she studied at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center under Dr. James D. Luketich, completing a Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery Fellowship.

In 2013, she was recruited back to Quebec and began her tenure as an Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at Laval University. She was named director of the Thoracic Oncology research program of the Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec (IUCPQ) at Laval University in 2015 and was promoted to clinical professor in 2019.

Dr. Ugalde established herself as a thoracic surgeon dedicated to research. She has an extensive record of publications including an impressive body of work on thoracic surgery using innovative uniportal VATS approaches for lung cancer. She has also participated in Canadian national clinical research groups. Dr. Ugalde oversaw the creation of the lung cancer database at Laval University, and under her guidance the university became the largest contributor in the world of cases to the prospective database maintained by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC). She was awarded the Clifton F. Mountain Lectureship Award for Staging from the IASLC in 2019, and due to this effort, she was appointed Chair of the Database Committee of Staging and Prognostic Factors Committee of the IASLC in 2019. In 2019, Dr. Ugalde was accepted as a member of the American Association of Thoracic Surgery (AATS) and in 2021 as member of the STS. In 2021, she was also nominated Board Director of the IASLC.

She has performed peer-review for the society’s journals as well as for other journals including the European Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery and given lectures at AATS symposia and worldwide. She has helped introduce minimally invasive thoracic surgery in Brazil and Latin America through courses and one-on-one mentoring, including teaching a Latin American fellow in Quebec each year who then returns to his or her home country. Additionally, Dr. Ugalde pursues this mission as co-chair of International Affairs for the Women in Thoracic Surgery society.

Locations

  1. Brigham and Women's Thoracic Surgery Clinic

Expertise

Education

  • Fellowship: University of Pittsburg Medical Center, Advanced Minimally Invasive & General Thoracic Surgery, 2008
  • Fellowship: Universite Laval/Faculty of Medicine, Thoracic Surgery, 2007
  • Fellowship: Federal University of Bahia, Lung Volume Reduction Surgery, 2004
  • Fellowship: Santa Case da Misecordia de Porto Alegre, Thoracic Surgery, 2001
  • Residency: Santa Case da Misecordia de Porto Alegre, Thoracic Surgery, 2000
  • Residency: Santo Antonio Hospital, General Surgery, 1998
  • Medical Education: Faculae de Medicina de Bahia, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 1995

Insurance

Search plans
  • Aetna
  • Beech Street
  • Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare
  • Cigna
  • Commonwealth Care Alliance
  • Coventry
  • Fallon Health
  • Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
  • Humana
  • Mass General Brigham Health Plan
  • MassHealth
  • Medicaid CT
  • Medicaid ME
  • Medicare
  • Multiplan
  • Railroad Medicare
  • Senior Whole Health
  • TriCare
  • Tufts Health Plan
  • Tufts Medicare Preferred
  • United Health Care
  • Wellpoint
  • WellSense

Ratings & Reviews

4.9 out of 5

143 ratings, 65 reviews

The Patient Satisfaction Rating is an average of all responses to the care provider related questions shown below from our survey. Patients that are treated in outpatient or hospital environments may receive different surveys, and the volume of responses will vary by question.

Search reviews
  • Reviewed on 5/27/2026

    Dr U is pleasant & kind.

  • Reviewed on 5/25/2026

    I think Dr. Ugalde did a great job with me and I'd recommend her to all my friends and family.

  • Reviewed on 5/15/2026

    Excellent care always

  • Reviewed on 5/13/2026

    I call her the Rock Star. I even reassured a friend's friend and put her at ease.

  • Reviewed on 5/12/2026

    Good experience!

  • Reviewed on 4/29/2026

    Very satisfied !

  • Reviewed on 4/20/2026

    Dr.Ugalde was amazing. I am so happy that she was my physician through this experience and I thank her so very much.

  • Reviewed on 4/18/2026

    Exceeded my expectations

  • Reviewed on 4/18/2026

    Paula A. Ugalde always provides me with as much information I need

  • Reviewed on 4/7/2026

    Empathetic, specific in communicating, recognized my son who was present

  • Reviewed on 4/5/2026

    Dr. Ugalde is awesome, she truly is. She listens without judging, she has amazing empathy and I really enjoy going to see her every 6 months for my follow ups.

  • Reviewed on 4/1/2026

    Professional respectful no complaints

  • Reviewed on 3/30/2026

    Dr. Ugalde is exceptional. She has great talent. She is compassionate. She really has intuition. She listens to patients and she goes above and beyond to really provide the best care. And I trust her completely. And I definitely feel I owe her my life because she convinced me to, you know, choose the surgery that I had to go through. And I'm grateful that I had that sooner rather than later. And she had a really important role in the success of that operation and in the results.

  • Reviewed on 3/29/2026

    Excellent doctor- so east to talk to and also explains things with clarity and caring. Excellent " bedside manner"- just a wonderful persom.

  • Reviewed on 3/28/2026

    B&W is my only provider from now on.

  • Reviewed on 3/22/2026

    Very professional, thorough,and informative! Top notch!!

  • Reviewed on 3/17/2026

    Paula Ugalde Figueroa MD has given me excellent care for the past 2 years. We have a good relationship. She doesn't mince words. To the contrary she gives me the facts.

  • Reviewed on 3/13/2026

    Dr. Ugalde provided the best care possible that I had experienced and would recommend her to anyone and everyone who was considering lung surgery.

  • Reviewed on 3/11/2026

    I trust Dr Ugalde whole heartedly.

  • Reviewed on 3/10/2026

    Excellent very attentive and respectful.

  • Reviewed on 3/9/2026

    My experience was great. She explained everything exactly like it needed to be explained and I'm hoping to be dealing with this provider in the future.

  • Reviewed on 3/7/2026

    She's great!

  • Reviewed on 3/6/2026

    Professional and caring.

  • Reviewed on 3/6/2026

    Most providable and knowledgeable provider I've ever dealt with. I appreciate her greatly.

  • Reviewed on 2/25/2026

    Dr Ugalde was very professional and candid. She was tactful with an uncomfortable topic and made me feel at ease

  • Reviewed on 2/23/2026

    Dr. Ugalde was absolutely amazing. I have had many surgeries in the past including thyroid cancer. Dr. Ugalde was honest and didn't pull any punches in letting me know that this is serious. She explained my test results in detail and also details of the surgical procedure. She used images and drew pictures of what she planned to do during surgery. Addressed my concerns and answered both my daughters and my questions in detail. I was expecting for a biopsy but she felt it was not necessary and wanted to do the surgery sooner rather than later. It is a very scary thing to have lung cancer and she was honest telling me that recovery will be quite painful which is expected. This is not a walk in the park but I feel confident in her knowledge and trust her skill for this major surgery. We shared several hugs thanks to her warmth and compassion. My biggest concern is that I am almost 2 hours away and there is an impending blizzard.. hey all I can do is pray at this point and trust in her skilled hands.

  • Reviewed on 2/11/2026

    She was very thorough and caring.

  • Reviewed on 2/7/2026

    Everyone I've encountered medically at Brigham and Women's has been very kind and compassionate. I've never had a bad experience there.

  • Reviewed on 1/30/2026

    Her confidence in a successful outcome eased my mind. She and her PA explained upcoming procedure clearly and thoroughly.

  • Reviewed on 1/29/2026

    She could have researched my condition before meeting with me

  • Reviewed on 1/29/2026

    I felt very comfortable with Dr. Ugalde and with the other staff who met with me.

  • Reviewed on 1/23/2026

    Paula is very professional and she treated me with the utmost respect. She made me feel comfortable through my whole process. I couldn't have asked for a better doctor. I would highly recommend Paula to anybody. She is excellent.

  • Reviewed on 1/21/2026

    Dr Ugalde got us in to see her so quickly. [redacted] She explained her proposal for my treatment. She showed me what made my circumstance a bit challenging. She was pragmatic but also encouraging.

  • Reviewed on 1/10/2026

    Very thoughtful and thorough!

  • Reviewed on 1/4/2026

    She explained everything in detail, was very calming and reassuring, and answered any questions that I asked of her. I think she's a wonderful doctor and I would recommend her to any family and friends or anyone that asked about her.

  • Reviewed on 12/29/2025

    Kind and professional staff. Doctor is sensitive to my condition and is being proactive in my treatment plan.

  • Reviewed on 12/24/2025

    Very direct explanations. Still lacked pathology info from another institution, but I believe it will be forthcoming shortly. I was extremely fortunate to have met with Dr. Figueroa.

  • Reviewed on 12/19/2025

    She was very forth coming with the information she had and didn't sugar coat it BUT was very respectful and very informative

  • Reviewed on 12/4/2025

    I look forward to working with you/ Dr Ugalde and the oncologist she has referred me to [redacted]

  • Reviewed on 11/22/2025

    She is warm and so friendly and concern for your health and well being.

  • Reviewed on 11/15/2025

    Very knowledgeable, professional, kind and interested in my concerns.

  • Reviewed on 11/10/2025

    Excellent through entire process and her team as well

  • Reviewed on 11/10/2025

    The overall experience for the specific condition was superb. The [redacted] video appointment was just a 6 month follow-up that met my expectation.

  • Reviewed on 11/8/2025

    The care provider was excellent [redacted]

  • Reviewed on 11/8/2025

    Always top notch !!

  • Reviewed on 10/30/2025

    Very good

  • Reviewed on 10/23/2025

    She is wonderful

  • Reviewed on 10/19/2025

    I always have excellent results from the provider

  • Reviewed on 10/16/2025

    Very knowledgeable and definitely confident in her path for the process of what is to be done to me.

  • Reviewed on 10/9/2025

    The specific location is hard to find. No clear easy signage. I circ led the complex twice. There is n o main entrance and there are shops all around on the street. I eventually had someone point out a small sign for MRI.

  • Reviewed on 9/27/2025

    Dr. Ugalde is an exceptional surgeon. Because she was so thorough in answering my questions, going above and beyond in collecting data from my other providers and explaining what to expect, she truly gave me the confidence to go through a very complex surgery despite other serious health issues I had at the time. She is an inspiration for her team and everyone is motivated to follow her example. I am very grateful that I get to see her periodically and I found her extensive knowledge and optimism to play an important role in the healing process.

  • Reviewed on 9/25/2025

    Very knowledgeable,kind and caring doctor

  • Reviewed on 9/25/2025

    Being a new patient, I appreciated everyone being so nice and respectful.

  • Reviewed on 9/25/2025

    The Dr. Was caring and kind. She immediately set me up with appointments I need with urgency. I am so grateful.

  • Reviewed on 9/24/2025

    Dr. Ugalde is very knowledgeable and professional. In addition, she is very personable and approachable. I enjoyed our conversation very much.

  • Reviewed on 9/22/2025

    Everything was fine

  • Reviewed on 9/17/2025

    Was so relieved that Dr Ugalde Figueroa was totally familiar with my history and showed me a progression of all my CT scans dating back to 2023 and even updating with a CT scan that was done immediately. Her Physician Assistant was so thorough in her questioning and explanation and listening and allaying my anxiety that my nephew turned to me and said, "Shall we set another place for Thanksgiving".

  • Reviewed on 9/4/2025

    Had an excellent visit with the doctor, she was very kind, caring and considerate and I felt as if I had known her for years.

  • Reviewed on 8/17/2025

    Excellent experience - I feel that I am in the best of hands - Dr Ugalde has the knowledge and experience needed to address the medical issues at hand in addition to the bedside manners needed by cancer patients.. she definitely makes a difference !!

  • Reviewed on 8/13/2025

    The surgeon reviewed my background and was very upfront with me as to next steps.

  • Reviewed on 8/9/2025

    [redacted] Dr. Figueroa appeared very informed and competent. [redacted]

  • Reviewed on 8/6/2025

    I love my Doctor. She is compassionate, kind and caring, all wrapped up in being a smart & wonderful Doctor. Can't say enough nice things about her!! Everyone at Dana/Farber & Brighams Women have Always been wonderful I have been very happy @ every visit

  • Reviewed on 7/31/2025

    The information about my medical issue was explained with clarity and made my son and I very at ease with the consultation experience

  • Reviewed on 7/23/2025

    This was my first visit. Although I would like to see the surgeon I was referred to, Dr. U and the entire Team were great!

  • Reviewed on 7/22/2025

    The visit exceeded my expectations. The attention given to me and the ability to communicate what I needed to know was so helpful. She is an expert and she coherently expressed the medical information to me in a way that I could understand having minimal medical knowledge myself.