Neurosurgery Blog
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The Wonders of the Unknown Brain
The past few decades have seen a dramatic increase in our understanding of the brain and how it works – new findings about plasticity, for example, have allowed us to revise our expectations about recovery after traumatic injury or stroke — and advanced technologies have greatly expanded our ability to treat a wide range of disorders. We know so much more now than we did 20 or 30 years ago, and yet every so often I’m struck by how much we still don’t know.
A Visit to Babylon
Earlier this month I was honored to serve as international faculty for a two-day seminar in Najaf, Iraq, sponsored by AOSpine Middle East. This was my third visit to Iraq for an AOSpine course, but my first time in Najaf. Although these teaching trips bear some resemblance to the work I do each year in Tanzania, the circumstances are very different. This trip especially exposed me to a great deal of Middle East history, and to the effects of international conflict on the ability to serve local patients.
When the Tables Are Turned
I often talk with anxious parents about their child’s upcoming surgery, but I recently found myself counseling and caring not for a child but a mother.
What to Talk About During Brain Surgery
Why some patients need to be awake during brain surgery -- and what we talk about when they are
The Role of Neuropsychologists in Neurosurgery
Patients who are referred here for neurosurgery are often a bit confused when they’re scheduled for time with a neuropsychologist before or after surgery. What does a psychologist have to do with neurosurgery, anyway?
Ending Cancer As We Know It
Last week the Cancer Moonshot Task Force released its official recommendations for achieving the lofty goal set out in President Obama’s State of the Union address: ending cancer as we know it. We can do it, but we must act now.
Chasing After ‘Compassionate Use’
When a child's life is at stake, we don't need a “fast” track to a regulatory okay -- we need a “now” track that keeps pace with scientific discoveries
Taking the Show on the Road
I’ve traveled around the world to dozens of professional conferences and courses — in China, India, Egypt, and more — to train many neurosurgeons in advanced techniques for treating skull base tumors. But my past two summers in Mexico have provided some of the most rewarding work I’ve ever done.
DIPG: A New Beginning
Today I treated the final child in my Phase 1 clinical trial of convection-enhanced delivery (CED) for the deadly brain tumor DIPG.
Early Detection Can Be Key to Surviving a Brain Tumor
For a neurosurgeon, the ability to treat a tumor before it progresses is a powerful way to save lives. Incidental findings are giving us new opportunities to do just that.
