2026 Speakers

Daniel Abenroth, MD, is a vascular neurologist and neurohospitalist who serves as the Clinic Director of the St. Luke’s Health System Stroke Program (Boise, ID).  He completed his undergraduate studies at Brigham Young University, medical education at Michigan State University, Adult Neurology residency at the University of Utah, and Vascular Neurology fellowship at Medical University of South Carolina.

Andrei Alexandrov, MD, RVT, NVS, completed his fellowship training in stroke and cerebrovascular ultrasound at the University of Toronto and at the University of Texas. He published 338 original papers, 3 textbooks, 16 case reports, 167 review articles, editorials, invited publications, and book chapters & over 350 abstracts presented at major scientific meetings and published in refereed journals.

Current h-index 87.  Dr Alexandrov has trained 61 fellows in stroke and cerebrovascular ultrasound. He served as Director of the Neurosonology Examination (1998-2018) and President of the American Society of Neuroimaging (2019-2021), Board member of the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC-Vascular, 2006-20, IAC-CT 2023-26), Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Neuroimaging (2026-).  As Semmes Murphey Professor and Chair of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center Neurology Department (2013-2023), he directed Mobile Stroke Unit with state-of-the-art CT performing head and neck CTA and accredited by IAC as CT laboratory and created Memphis city-wide Stroke Team that achieved and sustained the highest per capita treatment rates with tPA and mechanical thrombectomy in the world in 2015-2022. In 2023, he became the inaugural Chair of the Department of Neurology, University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix.

Anne Alexandrov, PhD, AGACNP-BC, ANVP-BC, FAAN, is a professor of both nursing and neurology as well as the mobile stroke unit chief nurse practitioner at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis.

She is also the professor and program director for Neurovascular Education and Training in Acute Stroke Management and Reperfusion Therapies (NET SMART) at the Health Outcomes Institute in Fountain Hills, Arizona. Developed in 2007, NET SMART is the world’s first and only post-graduate fellowship training program for advanced practice nurses in acute stroke. Through this program, she has mentored more than 150 APNs from across the U.S. and internationally.

Adam Arthur, MD, MPH, attended college and medical school at the University of Virginia. During that time he joined the University of Virginia’s Department of Neurosurgery and conducted research on aneurysms and cerebral vasospasm.

He completed his internship and residency at the University of Utah, where he also completed his master’s degree in public health with a focus on clinical trials methodology. After finishing his neurosurgery residency, he joined the Semmes Murphey Clinic and the University of Tennessee Department of Neurosurgery. During his first two years in Memphis, he completed a fellowship in endovascular and cerebrovascular neurosurgery. He is one of the first neurosurgeons in the country to develop a busy practice in both open cerebrovascular surgery and endovascular neurosurgery. Now in his twentieth year in Memphis he holds the James T. Robertson Endowed Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at UTHSC and is also the Chair of the AANS/CNS Joint Cerebrovascular Section and the Chair of the Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation. He is currently leading six different large scale multicenter clinicial trials and is actively engaged in developing and testing innovative strategies to improve patients’ lives across a number of disease states.

Nicole Bongers, Bongers is a senior medical device executive with more than 25 years of experience leading innovation across the full product lifecycle, from early development through global commercialization. She is recognized for building high-performing teams, advancing novel technologies, securing FDA and international approvals, and establishing scalable, compliant quality systems for Class I, II, and III medical devices.

She is the Owner of Concept to Commercialization, LLC, advising venture-backed and early-stage medical device companies, and serves as President of CB MedTech Foundry, providing executive leadership across clinical, regulatory, and quality functions while leading fundraising, due diligence, and business development for portfolio and spin-off companies.

Nicole has led global regulatory and clinical strategies resulting in 510(k) clearances, PMA approvals, and successful FDA engagements, working closely with regulators, investors, and key opinion leaders. She is actively involved in leading industry organizations and advances health equity initiatives that expand access to clinical research and innovative therapies in rural communities.

Imran Chaudry, MD, MBBS, is a neurointerventional radiologist who completed his radiology residency at the Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh, a Neuroradiology fellowship at the University of Wisconsin, and his Neurointerventional radiology fellowship at the University of Wisconsin and at the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston. Dr. Chaudry was the fellowship director at MUSC. He is currently a Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina (Greenville, SC) and serves as program and fellowship director at Prisma Health Greenville, SC.

Edward Duckworth, MD, MS, FAANS, is an intracranial-focused neurosurgeon specializing in the treatment of complex cranial disorders, including the surgical treatment of hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke. He is system director of neurosurgery for St. Luke’s and a voluntary clinical professor at UC San Diego.

Dr. Duckworth holds the distinction of being dual fellowship-trained: in open cerebrovascular and cranial base surgery at Northwestern University and in endovascular neurosurgery/interventional neuroradiology at Semmes Murphey Neurologic and Spine Institute/University of Tennessee Health Science Center. He has particular expertise in the treatment of complex aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, carotid disease and cerebral hypoperfusion. He is the founder and director of the Sun Valley Cerebrovascular Conference.

Lucas Elijovich, MD, FAHA, earned his bachelor’s degree in biology from Tufts University and his medical degree from the University of Texas at Galveston. He completed his neurology residency at New York University, where he served as chief resident.

He pursued advanced interests in cerebrovascular disease, neurocritical care and interventional neuroradiology, completing fellowship training in stroke and neurocritical care at the University of California, San Francisco. He then trained with Dr. Alejandro Berenstein, one of the pioneers of interventional neuroradiology, in New York. Dr. Elijovich joined Semmes Murphey Clinic in 2010 and is a professor in the Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center. He also serves as director of neurocritical for the University and director of neurointerventional surgery and the Vascular Anomalies Center for LeBonheur Children’s Hospital.

Raja Godasi, MD, is a vascular neurologist and a member of the St. Luke’s Neurohospitalist team. He completed medical school in India, followed by a neurology residency at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York, and a vascular neurology fellowship at Mayo Clinic Florida in Jacksonville. He is board certified in neurology and vascular neurology. His clinical interests include inpatient general neurology, vascular neurology, and neurosonology.

Stephen Graepel, MA, is the dedicated illustrator for Mayo Clinic Neurosurgery, developing images for publication, presentation and grant applications. A 1995 graduate of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, he earned a Master of Arts in Medical and Biological Illustration. Holding joint assistant professor in Biomedical Communications and Neurosurgery, beyond his illustration work, he leads medical illustration elective courses for Mayo Clinic medical students and learners. He takes great pride in the unique privilege to tell stories that haven’t been told before, bring clarity to complex topics, collaborate across disciplines, with high impact visuals that increase patient outcomes.

Ray Grams, DO, specializes in the treatment of ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, transient ischemic attack, cerebral venous thrombosis, and intra- and extra-cranial atherosclerotic disease. His clinical interests include cardioembolic sources of stroke, arterial dissection and other causes of stroke in young people; evaluation for carotid stenting or endarterectomy; and neurosonology. Dr. Grams has been a co-investigator of nine stroke trials and has published and presented original research on the use of perfusion MRI in acute stroke imaging. He was a clinical instructor at the University of Utah and stroke medical director of Dixie Regional Medical Center—Intermountain Healthcare prior to joining St. Luke’s, where he now serves as director of the neurohospitalist program.

Ramesh Grandhi, MD, is an ABNS certified, dual-trained cerebrovascular neurosurgeon. He has extensive clinical and research experience with patients with cerebrovascular and traumatic pathologies. He currently practices at the University of Utah where he is the Division Chief of Endovascular Neurosurgery and of Neurotrauma.

Brian Jankowitz, MD, is a board certified neurosurgeon with a special focus on cerebrovascular surgery.  He is CAST (Committee on Advanced Subspeciality Training) accredited in neuroendovascular surgery.  Dr. Jankowitz specializes in innovative treatments for ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke including carotid disease, intracranial stenosis, brain aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), and vascular malformations of the spine. He has extensive training in open and endovascular surgical procedures including CEA, TCAR, carotid stenting, aneurysm clipping, aneurysm coiling, and acute stroke interventions.

Prior to joining the Hackensack Meridian Neuroscience Institute at JFK University Medical Center, Dr. Jankowitz was the Division Head of Cerebrovascular Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.  He had previously served as the Director of the Cerebrovascular Program at Cooper Neurological Institute in Camden, New Jersey. He was also an associate professor of neurological surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and served as faculty of the UPMC Neurosurgery Department and UPMC Stroke Institute where he specialized in both open and endovascular neurosurgery.

Earning his bachelor of science degree from the University of Notre Dame, Dr. Jankowitz received his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine. He then went on to complete his surgical internship, neurosurgical residency, and fellowship in Neuroendovascular surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Jankowitz is a member of the American Board of Neurological Surgeons, the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery and the American Heart Association. He is also a member of the Congress of the Neurological Surgeons and the Endovascular Neurosurgery Research Group, and holds editorial positions on several national medical publications including The Spine Journal, World Neurosurgery, Neurosurgical Review, Interventional Neurology and the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery. He is also a primary investigator for several national clinical trials.

Pascal Jabbour, MD, is the Angela and Richard T. Clark Distinguished Professor of Neurological Surgery and Radiology and the Head of the Division of Neurovascular and Endovascular Neurosurgery in the Department of Neurological Surgery at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University. He is a dually trained vascular neurosurgeon , he performs endovascular and open procedures.

Dr. Jabbour is a very active speaker, lecturing on various neurovascular topics nationally and internationally.  He has authored 811 papers in peer-reviewed journals, including NEJM, The Lancet, Stroke, Neurosurgery, Journal of Neurointerventional Surgery, Interventional Neuroradiology, Journal of Neurosurgery, World Neurosurgery, Ophthalmology and Retina, h-index: 83 with 29055 Citations. He has authored more than 100 book chapters,  Dr. Jabbour serves as a section editor for Neurosurgery and is a reviewer for Neurosurgery, Neuroradiology, World Neurosurgery , Lancet Neurology, the Journal of Neurointerventional Surgery and many others. He is the author of 4  comprehensive textbooks, One of them : Neurovascular Surgical Techniques was translated into multiple languages. He has given more than 285 invited lectures nationally and internationally.

Dr Jabbour received a national award for his pioneering of a new technique in the treatment of retinoblastoma in babies. He is the National Primary Investigator (PI) on several Trials he is also one of the pioneers in neuroendovascular robotics.

Dr. Jabbour is a graduate of the Saint Joseph University School of Medicine in Beirut.  He completed his residency in neurosurgery at the University of Colorado and Thomas Jefferson University and his fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University.

Dr Jabbour is past President of the World Association of Lebanese Neurosurgeons (WALN). He is an active member of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons , The American Association of Neurological Surgery, Society of Neurointerventional Surgery, AANS/CNS joint CV section  the American College of Surgeons. He is the course director of a yearly conference The CV update in Philadelphia. He is the past Vice-Chair of the Cerebrovascular Section of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons AANS and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons CNS. He was the Drake invited lecture at the CNS 2024. He is also a certified level IV Sommelier from the National Wine School.

Evan Joyce, MD, MS, is a board-eligible Neurosurgeon at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, Idaho where he was recruited to help develop their burgeoning Endovascular program. Originally from Brookfield, Wisconsin, Dr. Joyce studied Biomedical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he also obtained a Masters Degree in Biomedical Engineering-Cellular Scale Engineering.

He attended medical school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating with Alpha Omega Alpha and Gold Humanism Honor Society awards, and then completed Neurosurgical residency at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. While in residency, he developed an interest in Endovascular Neurosurgery under the tutelage of Drs. Philipp Taussky and Ramesh Grandhi went on to complete an enfolded CAST-certified Endovascular fellowship during his final year of residency. His research work during training contributed to over 30 peer reviewed journal articles. Dr. Joyce now maintains a busy clinical practice at the region’s only Trauma Center including a mixture of endovascular neurosurgery and general neurosurgery. In his spare time, he enjoys skiing and trail running, aspiring to run the number of years he is turning each birthday.

Alexander Khalessi, MD, MBA, serves as Chief Innovation Officer at UC San Diego Health and Interim Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences Innovation and AI at UC San Diego. In these dual roles, he leads strategy at the intersection of clinical care, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and translational science. His portfolio includes enterprise innovation strategy, systemwide technology implementation, perioperative and procedural innovation, and capital alignment to position UC San Diego Health for AI integration. He also guides the alignment of academic discovery, clinical translation, and commercialization, and engages industry partners across the region’s biotech ecosystem to advance innovation and applied AI.

Dr. Khalessi is also Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at UC San Diego Health, one of the nation’s premier neurosurgery programs and consistently ranked among the top 25 by U.S. News & World Report. A board-certified cranial and endovascular neurosurgeon, he leads a comprehensive subspecialty department performing more than 4,500 major surgical cases annually and supporting key system designations including dual comprehensive stroke centers, level I trauma, level 4 epilepsy, comprehensive cancer, and advanced spine care. His clinical practice spans complex cranial surgery and catheter-based interventions for brain tumors, aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, stroke, cavernomas, Moyamoya disease, and carotid disease.

Nationally, Dr. Khalessi is recognized for his leadership in neurosurgical policy, innovation, and education. He currently serves as Chair of the AANS/CNS Washington Committee and is Immediate Past President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS). He also serves on the Boards of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and North American Neuromodulation Society (NANS), and is an elected member of the American Academy of Neurological Surgery. A founding member of the Medical Device Innovation Consortium, he advises the FDA on neurovascular technology and has served on NINDS study sections for translational device development and small business innovation.

Dr. Khalessi has authored more than 175 peer-reviewed publications and delivered over 250 scientific presentations. He serves as principal or co-investigator on more than 25 clinical trials and grants advancing surgical, endovascular, and device-based innovation. He earned his BA and MSc in Health Services Research from Stanford University, his MD from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, completed neurosurgical residency at the University of Southern California with a CAST-certified fellowship in endovascular neurosurgery at SUNY Buffalo, and received his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Jared Knopman, MD, is an Associate Professor of Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical Center, where he serves as Director of Cerebrovascular Surgery and Interventional Neuroradiology, as well as Fellowship Director of Endovascular Neurosurgery.

He has a special interest in coordinating acute stroke management at the prehospital setting, integrating prehospital scales, telemedicine systems and artificial intelligence based solutions. He is the Co-Pi of the RACECAT study. He also has a special interest in improving in hospital workflows such as direct transfer to angio-suite (CO-PI of the ANGIOCAT and WE TRUST studies) and neuroprotection in acute stroke (PI of APRIL trial). He contributed to the growth of endovascular treatment of stroke exploring new selection protocols and novel devices. He is the Co-founder of Anaconda Biomed and Nora Health.

Bala Krishnaiah, MD,  is an Associate Professor of Neurology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, where he serves as Vice Chair for Education, Division Chief of Vascular Neurology, Residency Program Director, and Neuroscience Course Director. He completed his neurology residency at Penn State and his fellowship training at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, where he joined the faculty.

He is the Medical Director of the Methodist Le Bonheur Stroke Network, overseeing regional stroke care delivery, including technology implementation, protocol development, and system coordination. He has mentored numerous trainees, developed neurology education pathways, and received more than 30 teaching awards, including the A.B. Baker Award, the AAN Neuroscience Course Director Excellence Award, and the Burton A. Sandok Visiting Professorship in Neurology Education from Mayo Clinic. He serves as principal investigator for multiple NIH StrokeNet trials and as site principal investigator for all StrokeNet trials at UTHSC, and he has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed publications. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Neurological Association.

Nikhil Mehta, MD, is a board-certified Neurointerventional Surgeon with Vascular & Interventional Partners in Phoenix, Arizona, specializing in advanced endovascular treatment of complex cerebrovascular disease. Dual-trained in IR and NIR, he focuses on innovative solutions for high-risk and “no-option” cases and is actively involved in education, research, and national presentations. Beyond clinical practice, he is a healthcare entrepreneur and thought leader working to improve access, efficiency, and innovation in medicine.

T.J. Miller, is a comedian. He has been diligently working to make people laugh for over two and a half years because life is tragic and the best thing he can do is make you giggle and perhaps pee. He is famous in Norway.  A skilled improviser, no show is ever the same.  Let me repeat that- no show you ever see will be the same.  Dare you?  See them all? His hour-long comedy specials DEAR JONAH (YouTube), METICULOUSLY RIDICULOUS (HBO) and NO REAL REASON (Comedy Central) are available to stream now wherever streaming is streamed.  His forthcoming special THE PHILOSOPHY CIRCUS showcases his talents as a clown, a juggler, and terrible ventriloquist.

 

Is he a musician?  No.  However, he has two music albums, THE EXTENDED PLAY E.P., a hip-hop/pop/folk music E.P. with 41 tracks, and THE EXTENDED PLAY E.P.:  THE ILLEGAL ART REMIXTAPE- available wherever fake music is listened to.

Miller’s voice stars as Gene in the EMOJI MOVIE and Fred in Disney’s Academy Award-winning BIG HERO 6. He voiced Tuffnut in the Oscar-nominated HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON and HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2. He played Auggie in the first R-rated stop-motion film HELL AND BACK, and Prancer in ICE AGE: A MAMMOTH CHRISTMAS.  A reindeer!

On television, he voiced Robbie from GRAVITY FALLS, Tuffnut in DRAGONS: RIDERS OF BERK, Randy in F IS FOR FAMILY and a volcano in FAMILY GUY. Don’t forget GORBURGER, a show so strange you’ll just have to Google it.
And that’s his voice.

You may recognize his non-animated face and body from DEADPOOL 1 & 2, the highest-grossing R-rated films of all time, forever, 2014’s surprise indie hit TRANSFORMERS 4: AGE OF EXTINCTION, Mike Judge’s HBO series SILICON VALLEY (Critics’ Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor), THOSE WHO CAN’T, GARFUNKEL AND OATS, HAPPY ENDINGS, appearances on KIMMEL, FERGUSON, COLBERT, and CONAN, or briefly on THE GOODWIN GAMES (canceled after 7 episodes) or CARPOOLERS (13 episodes).  He was on CHELSEA LATELY quite a bit and even guest-hosted for Chelsea. A ‘regular’ some might call him. Who those people are, he’ll never know.

He wrote, produced and starred in the Sundance accepted shorts SUCCESSFUL ALCOHOLICS and I’M HAVING A DIFFICULT TIME KILLING MY PARENTS.  Neither won awards.

T.J. has been in over 25 major studio films-  CLOVERFIELD, SHE’S OUT OF MY LEAGUE, Mike Judge’s EXTRACT, SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD, ROCK OF AGES, GULLIVER’S TRAVELS, OUR IDIOT BROTHER, YOGI BEAR 3D (for which he gave himself a Critic’s Choice Award for Best Supporting Character in a Talking Bear Comedy), UNSTOPPABLE, GET HIM TO THE GREEK, SEARCH PARTY, THE GOODS: LIVE HARD, SELL HARD, and finally his good friend Jay Baruchel’s GOON: LAST OF THE ENFORCERS.

Most recently, T.J. was the star of OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY, opposite Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston, i-R0ck in READY PLAYER ONE directed by Steven Spielberg, UNDERWATER opposite Kristen Stewart; a sci-fi disaster thriller- the perfect full circle return to his roots in CLOVERFIELD, and finally THE STAND-IN opposite Drew Barrymore, an official selection for the TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL, canceled due to the pandemic and 2020 generally being a fuckstick of a year.
He resides in Manhattan, NY, and Hollywood, California.  He was born in Denver.  He died in 2010 of an AVM.

He is first and foremost, a comedian. His standup is “Smooth Like Fire, Hip Like Lincoln.”

He will work until his death to make you happy.  He loves you.  He is a gentle giant, and would like you to see a live show.  It’s better that way.

Link to DEAR JONAH (Full Comedy Special) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNoD

J. Scott Pannell, MD, is the Chief of Endovascular Neurosurgery and the Director of the Endovascular Neurosurgery Fellowship in the Department of Neurological Surgery at UC San Diego Health.

He specializes the minimally invasive transarterial, transvenous, and direct percutaneous approaches to complex cerebral and spinal vascular lesions including carotid cavernous fistulas, dural arteriovenous fistulas, aneurysms, intracranial atherosclerosis, carotid atherosclerosis, and embolic strokes.  He also specializes in the minimally invasive treatment of CSF hypotension due to CSF venous fistulas and communicating hydrocephalus due to venous stenosis.

His research interests include endovascular-based treatments for aneurysms, hemorrhagic stroke, and large vessel ischemic stroke as well as endothelial repair mechanisms, stem cell therapy, robotic-assisted surgery, and simulator-based training. He is currently involved in multiple National Institutes of Health (NIH) and industry-funded research projects involving cerebrovascular diseases and spinal pain disorders. He also serves on several industry advisory panels and product steering committees.

Dr. Pannell has co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and more than 30 book chapters. He has given over 40 lectures and presentations at national meetings. Dr. Pannell is also a reviewer for multiple journals, including World Neurosurgery and the Journal of Neurointerventional Surgery.

He is a senior member of the Society of Neurointerventional Surgeons and a member of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons as well as the American College of Radiology. He is board certified in endovascular neurosurgery, neuroradiology and diagnostic radiology.

Dr. Pannell completed his fellowships in endovascular neurosurgery and neuroradiology at UC San Diego School of Medicine and his radiology residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and his internship at Emory University. He earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia and his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Georgia along with an additional American Chemical Society Certification.

Dr. Pannell’s personal interests include college football, automotive sports, and music. He enjoys spending time with his wife, son, dog, and his extended family who live in Georgia, where he was born and raised.

John Perl II, MD, is the director of neurointervention at St. Luke’s and formerly served as its neuroscience medical director. He was instrumental in establishing the stroke program and the endovascular neurosurgical and interventional neuroradiology program for the health system.

He completed his diagnostic radiology residency at the University of Alabama and his neuroradiology fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. His neurointerventional radiology training was at the University of Wisconsin under one of the founders of neurointerventional therapies, Dr. Charlie Strothers. Prior to coming to St. Luke’s in 2010, Dr. Perl worked at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis and at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. In his previous roles, he was active in fellowship education and translational science as well as actively developed some of the neurointerventional tools that are still in use today.

Lee Pride, MD, FACR, is Professor of Radiology and Neurosurgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas (UTSW) where he serves the fellowship director of the Neuroendovascular Surgery fellowship and maintains participation in an active multidisciplinary academic cerebrovascular practice. His research interests include intracranial atherosclerotic disease, stroke, and participation in device trials for cerebrovascular disease.

He completed medical school at the University of Alabama in 1989, two residencies (Neurology and Diagnostic Radiology) and two fellowships (Diagnostic Neuroradiology and Interventional Neuroradiology) at UTSW under the mentorship of Phillip Purdy. Since joining the UTSW faculty in 1999, he has held administrative positions as the Director of the Radiology Department fellowship programs and the program director for the Diagnostic Neuroradiology fellowship from 2008-2020. He is the current director of the Neuroendovascular Fellowship program at UTSW.

Adnan Qureshi, MD, is a Professor of Neurology and Program Director of the Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology program at the University of Missouri, Columbia. He brings a unique experience and perspective that would be highly valuable as a member of an advisory committee for clinical trial design. He offers the combined insights of a clinician, trialist, mentor, patient advocate, and educator.

Dr. Qureshi has served as the principal investigator for a large multinational clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health and was honored with the Established Investigator award from the American Heart Association for his work in acute stroke treatment. He has also led Investigator New Drug trials approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Currently, he is the principal investigator of a large, industry-funded multinational clinical trial and serves on the steering committee of a National Institutes of Health-funded trial focused on treatments for acute stroke, including intracerebral and subdural hemorrhage. His patient-centered work extends to leadership roles in the American Heart Association, American Academy of Neurology, World Stroke Organization, and Stroke Survivor groups. He has authored over 890 scientific publications in prestigious journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet, Archives of Internal Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, Neurology, American Journal of Medicine, JAMA Neurology, Stroke, and Circulation. Additionally, he has presented over 4,000 times at national and international conferences. As an editor, he has overseen more than 14 books on diverse topics ranging from Ebola to Zika virus diseases. He was the Editor of the Textbook of Interventional Neurology and the Atlas of Interventional Neurology, served as Associate Editor for the Journal of Neuroimaging, and currently is Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Neurology and HealthCare Research Journal.

His leadership roles include serving as President of the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology and the International Society of Interventional Neurology, as well as section chair for Interventional Neurology at the American Academy of Neurology. He has established the Zeenat Qureshi Stroke Institutes across the United States, China, Guinea, the Philippines, and Turkey, fostering cutting-edge research in epidemiology, clinical trials, and basic research on cerebrovascular diseases.

In addition to his research, he is deeply committed to training the next generation of medical professionals, having served as Program Director for Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology programs at three institutions over the past 20 years. He has trained 41 stroke and interventional physicians, many of whom have become Deans, Chairs, Program Directors, Presidents of national organizations, and Directors of stroke and interventional programs both in the U.S. and internationally. He has also mentored over 150 researchers and medical students across various institutions.

Yafell Serulle, MD, PhD, is Chief of Neuroendovascular Surgery and Director of the Neurointerventional Fellowship Program in the Department of Neurosurgery at Lenox Hill Hospital/Northwell Health in New York City. He is a board-certified interventional neuroradiologist specializing in the endovascular treatment of stroke, intracranial aneurysms, vascular malformations, atherosclerotic disease of the head and neck, and other vascular pathologies of the head, neck and spine.

Dr. Serulle leads a rapidly expanding, multi-hospital neuroendovascular program and is deeply involved in clinical trials focused on neurointerventional oncology, intra-arterial drug delivery, blood–brain barrier modulation, and neuroprotective strategies. His academic interests bridge translational research, innovation, and global neurointerventional education, with a focus on advancing precision endovascular therapies for complex neurological disease.

 

Eric Smith, MD,  is a fellowship-trained neurointerventional radiologist with expertise in minimally invasive procedures of the brain, head, neck, and spine. He specializes in both arterial and venous approaches for the treatment of many cerebrovascular disorders including: pulsatile tinnitus, idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), spontaneous intracranial hypotension, cerebrospinal fluid-venous fistulas, dural arteriovenous fistulas (dAVF), arteriovenous malformations (AVM), stroke, brain aneurysms, and other vascular disorders.

Dr. Smith is also interested in neurointerventional robotics, treatment of congenital vascular anomalies, and MRI guided focused ultrasound for the treatment of movement disorders such as essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease.

Dr. Smith completed diagnostic radiology residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin, followed by diagnostic and interventional neuroradiology fellowships at the University of California, San Francisco. He is excited to grow the neurointerventional program and offer cutting edge treatments and technologies to the patients of St. Luke’s.

Vivish Srinivasan, MD, is a comprehensive cerebrovascular neurosurgeon, with advanced training in both microsurgical/skull base techniques as well as endovascular techniques to treat cerebrovascular disorders. As director of the Kim Innovation Lab, his group performs translational research studying aneurysm healing, endovascular device development and testing, intravascular imaging, and intra-arterial therapy for tumors.

Robert Starke, MD, is a tenured full professor in the departments of Neurological Surgery, Neuroradiology, Neurosciences, Pharmacology, and Radiation Oncology. He has a busy clinical practice performing more than 750 operations each year. He specializes in the treatment of cerebral vascular disease and brain tumors.  Dr. Starke is currently a member of the University of Miami MILLER School of Medicine. Previously, he graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. from Princeton University and distinction in neuroscience.

He obtained his medical doctorate from Albert Einstein graduating with distinction in clinical and translational research. He also obtained a Masters of Medical Science with distinction in neuroscience research as part of the National Institute of Health Clinical Research Training Program. He also completed a cerebral vascular research fellowship at Columbia University, which provided him with a wide background in epidemiology and statistics. Dr. Starke attended neurosurgery residency at the University of Virginia. He also completed endovascular neuroradiology fellowships at Thomas Jefferson University and University of Virginia and a cerebral vascular and skull base fellowship at Auckland University Hospital, New Zealand. He is board certified in Neurosurgery ABNS and certified by the Committee on Advance Subspecialty Training in Endovascular Therapies (CAST).  His laboratory is supported by multiple grants including more than 3 million dollars from the National Institute of Health to study aneurysms. His research focuses on cerebral vascular pathophysiology. These avenues allow for the development of novel cellular, medical, radiographic, surgical, and endovascular techniques. He has co-authored over 800 academic publications. As the Director of Neurovascular Research, he helps run numerous clinical trials for minimally invasive treatment of cerebral vascular disease brain tumors.

Jeffrey Steinberg, MD,  is a neurosurgeon who specializes in vascular diseases of the nervous system. He treats aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations (AVM), dural arteriovenous fistulas (dural AVF), stroke, moyamoya disease, intracranial hemorrhage, carotid disease, cavernous malformations, trigeminal neuralgia, in addition to brain tumors such as meningiomas.  He is the chief of cerebrovascular surgery at UCSD.

Shannon Tierney, MD, is a board-certified vascular neurologist. She joined the St. Luke’s neurohospitalist group in September 2024 after completing her training at the University of Washington. Her special interests include acute stroke care, strokes in young adults, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, neurosonology, and clinical education.

Ajay Wakhloo, MD, PhD, earned both his MD and PhD in endocrinology and metabolic disorders from the University of Mainz, Germany. He completed fellowships in diagnostic and interventional neuroradiology, as well as endovascular neurosurgery, at the University of Freiburg, SUNY Buffalo, and the BNI in Phoenix. In 1995, he was awarded the venia legendi from the University of Tübingen, Germany, for his research and thesis on flow diversion for brain aneurysms.

He served as an Associate Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at SUNY Buffalo (1995-1999), a Professor of Radiology, Neurology, and Neurosurgery at the University of Miami (1999–2005), and Professor and Chief of Neurointervention and Neuroimaging at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (2005–2018) and at the Beth Israel Lahey Clinic, Boston (2018–2023).

He currently holds the position of Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine and serves as CMO and CEO for various start-ups. His groundbreaking contributions have earned him numerous scientific awards from the Whitaker Bioengineering Research Foundation, the German Society of Neuroradiology, and the Society of Vascular Interventional Neurology Innovation. He was named a Fellow of the AHA and Stroke Council and a Fellow of the Society for Neurointerventional Surgery. Renowned as the father of flow diversion, Dr. Wakhloo was the first to introduce the concept in 1989. His pioneering work also extended to stent retriever thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke, published in 2008. Holding multiple U.S. patents for neurovascular devices, he has been at the forefront of innovation. Dr. Wakhloo has served on editorial boards of major medical journals, played key advisory roles in Medtech companies, and secured private and federal research funding as a PI and Co-Investigator on numerous grants from NIH and industry. With over 500 peer-reviewed publications, book chapters, and scientific articles, he continues to advance the field of neurovascular medicine.