Former Henry Ford physician’s trailblazing legacy recognized through $15 million gift

Over the course of his storied career, Mani Menon, M.D., chairman emeritus of the Department of Urology and founding director of the Vattikuti Urology Institute, has garnered international prestige for his trailblazing work in urology and robotic surgery.

Dr. Menon helped establish the first robotic surgical program in the world at Henry Ford Hospital, and his minimally invasive procedure, the Vattikuti Institute Prostatectomy, would later become the international gold standard for the surgical treatment of prostate cancer.

The Vattikuti Urology Institute, launched by Dr. Menon with the support of philanthropists Raj and Padma Vattikuti, helped further revolutionize robotic surgery beyond prostate cancer — advancing robotic procedures for bladder cancer, kidney cancer and kidney transplants and more. Dr. Menon’s transformational impact has even granted him a feature in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History “Many Voices, One Nation” exhibit recognizing his pioneering efforts in robotic surgery.

Reflecting on the robotic surgery program, Dr. Menon said, “What we did at Henry Ford changed the world of surgery one patient at a time.”

In November 2025, Henry Ford Urology celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Vattikuti Urology Institute and the first robotic prostatectomy program in the United States. Today, the department has another monumental milestone to celebrate: the Menon Family Foundation’s $15 million gift to advance urologic excellence.

The gift will imbue the Department of Urology, chaired by Craig Rogers, M.D., with dedicated resources to establish Henry Ford Health as the global leader in the new Menon Precision Prostatectomy; strengthen the research and education infrastructure, and support recruitment of top faculty and residents; and provide flexible resources to remain agile in the rapidly evolving surgical landscape, among other priorities.

“The Vattikutis’ gift was transformational to me and hinged on trust between Mr. and Mrs. Vattikuti giving me latitude to do what I needed to do within Urology. I want to give Craig [Rogers] the same latitude.”

Moreover, the gift aims to cement Henry Ford as an international, world-class destination for treating the most complex urological conditions while promoting the department’s core principles of decency, integrity, courage and kindness.

Advancing capabilities through philanthropy is not new to Dr. Menon, who has a robust history of philanthropy over the course of his 24 years with Henry Ford. This most recent gift is a continuation of that trend, but on a larger scale than ever before.

Dr. Menon is also making matching gifts to multiple academic medical centers to advance urology resident training on a national scale. That’s why his generous gift also allocates crucial support for one of his foremost passions: education.

Data collected from the da Vinci robotic surgical system bears evidence of the exponential growth of robotic surgery at Henry Ford thanks to Dr. Menon’s tutelage. Within the department during Dr. Menon’s tenure, roughly 8,000 robotic surgery cases could be credited directly to Dr. Menon himself. When he stepped down as chair of the department in 2020, 100,000 cases had been performed by clinicians he trained. Cases performed by the clinicians his trainees later trained would bring that number up to nearly a million.

“I wouldn’t be in academic medicine if I didn’t want to train people,” he shared. “We’re hoping to build the future leaders of urology.”

In May 2026, Dr. Menon was recognized with the American Urological Association’s Ramon Guiteras award, given to those who have made outstanding contributions to the art and science of urology. Amid a career that has continually expanded frontiers of medical innovation in urology, Dr. Menon’s incredible generosity is now forging pathways for the next century of care in the field.