Title:

• Professor, Todd-Wells Professorship in Neurosurgery

Department:

• Department of Neurological Surgery

Locations:

• HCC II

Areas of Treatment:

• Central Nervous System Tumors
• Cerebral Tumors
• CNS Neuoplasm Steoreotaxy
• CNS Function Improvement for Surgical Methods
• Metastatic Brain Lesion
• Pituitary Adenoma
• Stereotactic Radiosurgery (Gamma Knife or Cyberknife)

Specialties:

• Neurosurgery

Background:

Michael L.J. Apuzzo is the Edwin Todd/Trent H. Wells, Jr. Professor of Neurological Surgery and Radiation Oncology, Biology, and Physics at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. He is director of neurosurgery at the USC Kenneth Norris, Jr. Cancer Hospital and is director of the Center for Stereotactic Neurosurgery and Associated Research there. Additionally, he is clinical director of surgical neuro-oncology, Director of the Gamma Unit Facility at Keck Hospital of USC and Director of the Cyberknife Unit at Kenneth Norris Cancer Hospital. Apuzzo established one of the world's first central nervous system tumor immunology laboratories and simultaneously developed programs for the study of refinements of microsurgical techniques of intra- and transcerebral surgeries for the management of intracranial neoplasms. He was also an innovator in the emergence of imaging directed stereotactic neurosurgery. Apuzzo has been active in studying the concept of functional restoration in the central nervous system and performed North America's first human stereotactic cerebral grafting research procedure. He is currently concerned with the area of "molecular neurosurgery" with applications of genetic engineering to neoplastic and functional disorders. He has nearly 600 scientific publications including 42 edited volumes on topics related to stereotaxy, operative techniques, epilepsy, brain neoplasia, craniocerebral trauma and the future of neurosurgery, including the important and acclaimed surgical atlas texts Surgery of the Third Ventricle and Brain Surgery: Complication and Avoidance Management. He has served in an editorial or scientific review capacity for more than 40 journals and sat on the review boards of 12 journals and other regular publications. He is Editor-in-Chief of the international journals Neurosurgery, Neurosurgery-Online and Operative Neurosurgery. His primary clinical interests continue to be the refinement of techniques of cerebral surgery, applications of the spectrum of physical energy forms to tumor management, introduction of innovative high technology adjuvants to practical neurosurgery, molecular neurosurgery with functional restoration, cerebral protection methodologies, and the design of advanced neurosurgical operative environments.

Featured Articles:

• CyberKnife Developed at USC: USC Consult, Fall 2008 (520 Kb)


• USC Has L. A.’s Only New Gamma Knife®: USC Consult, Fall 2008 (520 Kb)


• Cutting Edge Technology: Health Tips


• State-of-the-art radiosurgical tool promises faster, better treatment: Press Room, July 2008

Education:

• Boston University School of Medicine, MD, 1965

Internships:

• Royal Victoria Hospital, McGill University Montreal, Surgery, 1965 - 1966

Residencies:

• Yale University Health Services Center, Neurological Surgery, 1966 - 1973

Fellowships:

• Yale School of Medicine, Post-Doctoral Fellow - Neuropathology, 1967
• Yale School of Medicine, Post-Doctoral Fellow - Neurophysiology, 1971

Board Certification:

• American Board of Neurological Surgery
• American Association of Neurosurgery
• Congress of Neurosurgery
• Academy of Neurosurgery

Professional Society Memberships:

• American Association of Neurosurgery
• Congress of Neurosurgery
• Academy of Neurosurgery

Awards:

• Honored Guest Laureate--Annual meeting of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons generally regarded as the principle academic honor in neurosurgery. San Diego, CA.
• Sixto Obrador Medtal--For Herbert Olivercrona Medical--the first of such presented for William Beecher Scoville Prize--for the GAGNA A. & Ch. VAN HECK Prize.

Languages:

• English