Renowned University of Pittsburgh Neurosurgeon to be Honored Guest at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting

L. Dade Lunsford, M.D., director of the University of Pittsburgh department of neurological surgery’s Center for Image-Guided Neurosurgery, will be the honored guest at next week’s annual gathering of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) in San Diego, Sept. 15 to 20. This is a recognition bestowed upon only one neurosurgeon each year by the CNS, a leading international neurosurgical organization with a mission to promote public welfare through the advancement of neurosurgery, commitment to excellence in education and dedication to research and scientific knowledge.

Dr. Lunsford, who is the Lars Leksell Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has achieved international acclaim as an expert in stereotactic surgery. Through his leadership, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) in 1987 became the first hospital in the United States to use the gamma knife, a device for performing brain surgery without an incision. UPMC now has three such devices and is an established world leader in gamma knife treatment and education. More than 8,500 patients have undergone gamma knife brain surgery at UPMC. The new generation Perfexion gamma knife, a fully robotic technology, will be inaugurated at UPMC at the end of the month.

Dr. Lunsford has authored more than 400 articles and almost 200 book chapters and has served as editor or co-editor of six books. He has lectured locally, nationally and internationally during his career. Dr. Lunsford chaired the department of neurosurgery from 1997 to 2006. He was recently named Distinguished Professor at the University of Pittsburgh – the highest honor the university can accord a faculty member, marking Dr. Lunsford’s extraordinary, internationally recognized scholarly attainment.