The Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation is pleased to announce its 2005 grant recipients. This year, NREF awarded nine grants, four Research Fellowships and five Young Clinician Investigator Awards totaling $390,000. Since its inception in 1981, NREF has continued its efforts to increase the number of grant awards from year to year.
The NREF Research Fellowship provides funding for neurosurgical residents who are preparing for academic careers as clinician investigators. Applicants must be physicians who have been accepted into, or who are in, approved residency training programs in neurological surgery in North America. The Research Fellowship is a two-year commitment totaling $70,000 or a one-year grant totaling $40,000. This year’s winners include:
- Daniel P. Cahill, MD (2 years), Massachusetts General Hospital
- Ali Chahlavi, MD, MS (1 year), Cleveland Clinic Foundation
- Suresh N, Magge, MD (1 year), University of Pennsylvania
- NREF/DePuy Spine Research Fellowship, Joseph G. Ong, MD (1 year), University of Pittsburgh
The NREF Young Clinician Investigator Award supports junior faculty who are pursuing careers in research. Applicants must be neurosurgeons who are full-time faculty in North American teaching institutions and in the early years of their careers. The purpose of this award is to fund pilot studies, providing preliminary data to be used to strengthen applications for more permanent funding from other sources. The one-year award provides $40,000. This year’s winners include:
- Gavin W. Britz, MD, University of Washington
- William T. Curry Jr., MD, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Stephen Russell, MD, New York University
- NREF/Medtronic Neurological YCI Award, Emad Eskandar, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital
- NREF/Kyphon YCI Award, James W. Leiphart, MD, The George Washington University
The NREF expresses its deep appreciation to the AANS members, the general public and corporate supporters Kyphon, Inc., Medtronic Neurological, and DePuy Spine, a Johnson & Johnson Company, for their continued support and contributions which make these NREF fellowships possible. For more information on how you can support NREF grants and the future of neurosurgery, please contact the director of development at (847) 378-0500. Grant applications for 2006 are now available. For more information and a copy of the application, please visit at www.aans.org/research.
Terri L. Bruce is AANS development coordinator.