Dr. Kristen Aliano Messina is a plastic surgeon at Advanced Dermasurgery Associates. She is passionate about skin cancer surgery and aesthetics.
Dr. Aliano Messina grew up on the beautiful north shore of Long Island, New York in the charming seaside town of Cold Spring Harbor. In high school, she conducted molecular biology and genetics research at the world-renown Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. In her senior year of high school, Dr. Aliano Messina was chosen to be a Partner for the Future at the Laboratory. She graduated at the top of her class, although the school does not formally rank students.
She then matriculated at Cornell University, where she was chosen to be a part of the highly selective Cornell Presidential Research Scholars. Dr. Aliano Messina graduated in 3.5 years with a Bachelor of Arts degree in biological sciences with a concentration in neurobiology and behavior. She graduated Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and with Distinction in All Subjects. She spent the next 7 months working at Pfizer’s world headquarters in Manhattan where she was a clinical trials associate; she helped to conduct international clinical trials for Macugen and Spiriva.
Dr. Aliano Messina then began her medical school studies at Stony Brook University School of Medicine. She aspired to be a plastic surgeon and spent the next four years of her schooling dedicated to this goal. She was elected to the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society in her third year. She graduated #1 in her class of 116 students and was chosen to be a part of the Gold Foundation Humanism Honor Society. Dr. Aliano Messina earned a variety of awards, including the Glasgow-Rubin Certificate of Achievement, Glasgow-Rubin Commendation, Merck Book Award, and the Marvin Kuschner Award.
She began her training in general surgery at Stony Brook University Hospital. After her first year, she went on to complete a two-year research fellowship at the Long Island Plastic Surgical Group. During her fellowship, she published numerous papers in medical journals, gave over 15 oral presentations at local, national, and international meetings, and presented over 100 poster presentations at various conferences. Additionally, she helped to found a microsurgical simulation company and was the recipient of two research grants. Dr. Aliano Messina also served in the capacity of Residency Research Coordinator for the group and helped to grow the Academic Research Division. At the conclusion of her research experience, she returned to Stony Brook University Hospital to complete her second clinical year of general surgery training.
Upon completion of her second year of training, she was thrilled to be able to transfer to the integrated plastic surgery residency program at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas as a third-year resident. Her plastic surgery training encompassed the full breadth of plastic and reconstructive surgery, including aesthetic surgery, hand surgery, burn reconstruction, craniofacial reconstruction, and oncological reconstruction. She completed her plastic surgery training in 2019. As a plastic surgery resident, Dr. Aliano Messina was actively involved in national plastic surgery organizations and served on committees for them. She continued to pursue her research interests, and wrote two book chapters, published papers in scientific journals, and presented her research at regional and national conferences. On two occasions, she was chosen to be featured in videos focusing on female plastic surgeons.
Dr. Aliano Messina moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area shortly before the pandemic began and is now thrilled to be part of Advanced Dermasurgery Associates. She currently performs skin cancer surgery reconstruction, hair restoration, injectables, chemical peels, laser procedures, and radiofrequency/microneedling.
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her Texas-native husband, Jude, whom she married in her chief year of residency, and her daughter, Gianna. Dr. Aliano Messina enjoys visiting museums, reading biographies, traveling, ballet, exercising, trying new restaurants, sporting events, history, and art.
