Issam Awad, MD, MSc, FACS

Issam Awad, MD, MSc, FACS is Professor of Neurosurgery at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He is the current Chairman of the Cerebrovascular Section of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and Congress of Neurological Surgeons and the 51st President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. Dr. Awad is a leading cavernous angioma researcher and co-editor of the text Cavernous Malformations.

Dr. Biller

Dr. Jose Biller is a professor of neurology and neurological surgery at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. Dr. Biller is a nationally known neurologist with a specialty in cerebrovascular illnesses. He currently is vice chair, Committee on Subspecialty Certification in Vascular Neurology, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN). He served as president of the ABPN in 2001 and was its director from 1994 to 2001. He currently serves on the editorial board for several publications including Stroke, CNS Drugs, Neurology Bulletin, Neurological Research, and since 2002, is the Editor of Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases as well as Seminars in Cerebrovascular Diseases and Stroke.

Dr. Biller is helping us to reach the neurological community with information about cavernous angioma by encouraging and facilitating journal article publications and by eventually working with us to sponsor Continuing Medical Education programs for neurologists. He also serves as a resource to those who have epilepsy as a result of their cavernous angioma.

Douglas Marchuk, Ph.D.

Douglas Marchuk, Ph.D. is a Principal Investigator and Associate Professor at the Duke University Medical Center Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology. Dr. Marchuk’s lab has identified the location of the CCM2 gene, is working to understanding the mechanisms behind cavernous angioma formation, and is developing a mouse model of the illness.

Dr. Leslie Morrison

Dr. Leslie Morrison is a pediatric neurologist and an assistant professor at the University of New Mexico Medical School. Dr. Morrison has a research interest in neurologically based genetic disorders, particularly familial cavernous angioma and oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy which have founder mutations within the Hispanic population of New Mexico. Dr. Morrison has worked with Dr. Doug Marchuk, another of our scientific advisors, performing a genetic analysis on those with the common Hispanic cavernous angioma founder mutation who are being seen at UNM. She is working with us to develop the structure of our patient registry, to gather information from patients at UNM, and to analyze data as it becomes available.

Eric Johnson, Ph.D.

Eric Johnson, Ph.D. is the Director of Iverson Genetics, based in Seattle, Washington. He was a senior research scientist, director of the Neurogenetics laboratory, and chief of the Molecular Diagnostics laboratory at the Barrow Neurological Institute. Dr. Johnson’s lab offers CCM clinical genetic testing, and he is the current Executive Director of the Genetic Alliance Biobank.

Michel Berg, M.D.

Michel Berg, M.D. is an Associate Professor of Neurology and the Medical Director of the Strong Epilepsy Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY. In addition to his work as an epileptologist, Dr. Berg has both a research and clinical interest in cavernous angioma. He has been a strong advocate for increased training of neurologists in this area through grand rounds, as creator and reviewer of our 2007 Neurology Residents Award, and as coordinator for a proposed continuing medical education course for neurologists. Dr. Berg’s faculty profile can be found at:

http://www.stronghealth.com/services/neurology/bio/berg.cfm

Dr. Rustam Al-Shahi Salman MA(Cantab) MB BChir PhD MRCP(UK)

Dr. Rustam Al-Shahi Salman MA(Cantab) MB BChir PhD MRCP(UK) is a clinician scientist and honorary consultant neurologist in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the principal investigator for the Scottish Intracranial Vascular Malformation Study (SIVMS), a population-based cohort study that follows individuals diagnosed with AVMs, cavernous angioma, and venous angioma. Dr. Al-Shahi Salman has been a primary reviewer for the construction of the clinical database associated with the Angioma Alliance DNA/Tissue BioBank and Patient Registry. His faculty page can be found at:

http://www.dcn.ed.ac.uk/pages/profiles/profiles.asp?ProfileId=1