In Memoriam: Dr. Lillian F. Lien
Published on Monday, February 10, 2025
The Medical Center extends its sympathy to the family of a former faculty member in appreciation for the loved one’s contributions to the academic health sciences center.
Dr. Lillian F. Lien
Dr. Lillian F. Lien, professor of medicine and director of the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, whose devotion to patients with diabetes led her from a successful career at Duke University to the state where she believed they needed her most, has died.
“She was an excellent clinician and selfless leader who had a major impact on the quality of diabetes care in our community and beyond,” said Dr. Michael Hall, UMMC professor and Patrick H. Lehan Chair of Cardiovascular Research.
“She was a dedicated teacher and a mentor. Most importantly, she was a friend to all.”
Dr. Amanda Clark, associate professor of medicine at UMMC, was struck by Lien’s “warmth, humor and kindness to all.
“She was a wonderful teacher, mentor and friend. She is, and will be, greatly missed.”
Although she was born in Bloomington, Indiana, Lien spent most of her childhood in Colorado and Idaho. At Harvard University, she received her undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering before earning her medical degree at the Duke University School of Medicine in 1999.
At Duke University Medical Center, she completed an internship and residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in endocrinology, metabolism and nutrition. She devoted her early career to translational research in diabetes and obesity.
In 2005, she joined the Duke University Medical Center faculty and became an assistant professor of medicine in 2006, medical director of Duke Inpatient Diabetes Management in 2008 and an associate professor of medicine in 2013. Among the honors she receive there was the Endocrine Division Achievement Award.
While still serving on the Duke faculty, and after giving a presentation on managing diabetes in the hospital during a national conference, a recruiter from UMMC asked her to come to Mississippi, which had, and continues to have, one of the highest rates of diabetes in the country. Apparently, this was all she needed to hear.
In 2014, she made the move and joined UMMC in the Department of Medicine, where she began serving as division chief.
As a clinician at UMMC, Lien was valued mentor to Dr. Licy Yanes Cardozo, now a professor of pharmacology/toxicology and professor in the Division of Endocrinology. As a colleague, “she truly lit up the lives of others,” Yanes Cardozo said.
“Each of her emails began with ‘My Endocrine Family,’ a heartfelt greeting that made us feel like more than just colleagues – we were a true family united by her love and support.
“She had a unique way of making everyone feel cherished, always returning from her trips with super cute gifts. She loved organizing our Christmas parties, birthday celebrations, welcome events for new colleagues, and heartfelt farewell gatherings for the fellows, ensuring each occasion was filled with warmth, laughter, and a sense of togetherness.
“She was also a loving and dedicated daughter. And she was a fantastic physician; her patients adored her.”
Many of those patients struggled with diabetes. In a 2018 interview, Lien said the state had cases that were among the most advanced she had ever seen, including one patient whose blood glucose level was the highest she had ever come across.
Her concern for the safe care for her patients was acknowledged in 2021 by the Mississippi Chapter of the American College of Physicians, which presented her with its Laureate Award. It honors fellows and masters of the ACP for their achievements and commitment to excellence in medical care, education or research and in service to their community, chapter and the college.
Lien was also a nationally-sought invited speaker whose research interests included inpatient diabetes, intravenous insulin, obesity and the metabolic syndrome. Her body of work includes several dozen articles on obesity and diabetes that were published in peer-reviewed professional journals, along with many book chapters. She also served as a journal reviewer and editor for endocrine and internal medicine scientific publications.
She was a member of the ACP, American Diabetes Association, and American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, among many other organizations.
Beyond her professional accomplishments, her legacy includes the impression she left on those who worked with her. Moved by the loss of her friend, Yanes Cardozo translated into English a poem, “Necessary People,” by the Argentinian writer, Hamlet Lima Quintana.
“It describes very well what Dr. Lien was for many of us,” Yanes Cardozo said. The last stanza reads: “And we go through life as if in love with it,/ banishing the loneliness of death,/ for we know, that just around the corner,/ there are people like this, so necessary.”