Dear Colleagues

I write to inform you that Dr. Dade Lunsford, Chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery, has arrived at a point in his career whereby he now feels it appropriate to return to his first loves – patient care, education, innovation, and investigation – and to relinquish the daunting administrative responsibilities of a department chair. Therefore, Dade has submitted his resignation as Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery, effective July 1, 2006. Dade will retain his position as the Lars Leksell Professor of Neurological Surgery, and we are fortunate indeed that we will continue to benefit from Dade’s extraordinary skills, achievements, and recognition as a clinician, educator, and researcher. Our Department of Neurological Surgery is certainly at the very top-tier of such departments nationally, assessed by any objective metric, and during Dade’s ten years of chairmanship, this fine department has continued its ascendancy.

I have asked Dr. Amin Kassam to serve as Interim Chair, effective July 1st. Amin received his M.D. degree from the University of Toronto and had his residency in neurosurgery at the University of Ottawa. While at the University of Ottawa, he also completed the course work for a Masters Degree in clinical epidemiology. He was appointed as an Assistant Professor in our Department of Neurological Surgery in 1998, and he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2004. He holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Otolaryngology. He is a member of the clinical attending staffs at Presbyterian, Montefiore, Shadyside and Children’s Hospital. Dr. Kassam holds specialty certification from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and he has completed the written examinations of the American Board of Neurological Surgery.

Dr. Kassam and his colleague, Dr. Carl Snyderman, have pioneered endoscopic transnasal surgical techniques such that they are able to access lesions at the base of the skull through the nostril. This has revolutionized the surgical treatment of skull base tumors, arteriovenous malformations, aneurysms, and other lesions in a part of the brain that heretofore was accessible only through craniotomy. These surgical techniques have yielded a substantial reduction in morbidity and mortality, reflecting the far less invasive approach to lesions in this site. More recently, Dr. Kassam has also been focused on the molecular pathogenesis of cerebral aneurysms, thereby adding an interest in molecular genetics to his research repertoire. Although these are still relatively early days in his career, Amin is already recognized for his achievements nationally and internationally. He delivered the President’s Invited Lecture at the Annual Meeting of the International Society of Pediatric Neurosurgeons in 2005 and in that same year, he co-chaired the First World Congress for Endoscopic Surgery of the Brain, Skull-Base, and Spine. In 2004, he delivered the Hitselberger Lecture at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology and the M.T. Richard Lecture at the University of Ottawa. In the past two years also, he has lectured at the Universities of Rochester, Washington, Virginia, Toronto, and Illinois as well as at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Kassam is the co-investigator of two NIH- R01 grants and site investigator for a third. He is a member of the Executive Board of the North American Skull Base Society.

Dr. Steven DeKosky, Chairman of the Department of Neurology, will serve as Chair of the Search Committee charged with identifying candidates for the permanent chairmanship of this Department. In short order, I will announce the names of the other members of this committee. It is my goal to identify, and have in place, a permanent chair as rapidly as is possible. Importantly, I want to stress here that this search will be aggressive, broad, and unconstrained, i.e., I will choose for the permanent chairmanship the very best person who makes himself or herself available for this very important position.

Sincerely,

Arthur S. Levine, MD
Senior Vice Chancellor for the Health Sciences, and
Dean, School of Medicine

From L. Dade Lunsford, MD

After my recent trip to Asia, I returned to the USA with a new personal plan. Having served as chair of the academic Department of Neurological Surgery for almost 10 years, and for almost two years prior to that as acting chair, I have decided to step down as of July 1, 2006. Change at periodic intervals is often desirable even if it is challenging for all affected. I believe that our department is recognized as being a powerhouse regionally, nationally and abroad. Our department has remarkable depth in its faculty, staff, trainees, and has had great success in achieving the mission of patient care, education, research and innovation. Collaboration and mutual respect are critical. As we move to a new chapter, I want to thank my many colleagues who have provided support and assistance during my time as chair.

L. Dade Lunsford, MD
Lars Leksell Professor