Awad was recruited in 2010 to lead the Neurovascular Surgery Program at the University of Chicago Medicine, and is currently tenured in the Biological Sciences Division. He is the John Harper Seeley Professor of Neurological Sciences and Professor of Neurological Surgery, Neurology, the Grossman Institute of Neuroscience, Quantitative Biology and Human Behavior, and the (PhD granting) Committee on Neurobiology. He is a Senior Faculty Scholar at the Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence and directs the Safadi Program of Excellence in Clinical and Translational Neurosciences. Dr Awad is active in numerous professional and learned societies. He has served on the Executive Committee of the American Stroke Association, and on the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons. He was the Chairman of the Joint Cerebrovascular Section of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, he has directed the Annual Course on Research Update in Neuroscience for Neurosurgeons, and he served as the 51st President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. Dr Awad is the Founding past-President of the World Association of Lebanese Neurosurgeons, and the Founding Chairman of Scientific Advisory Board of the patient advocacy group Angioma Alliance.
Dr Awad has authored over 350 scientific papers and book chapters, and edited twelve books dealing with cerebrovascular surgery and other aspects of neurological surgery. He has presented over 500 papers and lectures at major meetings and symposia, has been a visiting professor at numerous institutions in the United States and abroad, was recognized among America’s Best Doctors, Best Teachers, and is the recipient of the Bucy Award for Excellence in Neurosurgical Education, the Arnold Award for Mentoring at Pritzker School of Medicine, and numerous other honors. Dr Awad has made numerous scientific contributions including the characterization of subcortical ischemic lesions in the aged, advances in the understanding of the natural history and biologic behavior of vascular malformations of the brain, numerous technical advances in neurovascular and epilepsy surgery, and is a recognized expert in the treatment of neurovascular disease, hemorrhagic stroke and neurosurgical critical care. His research has been cited by other researchers more than 79,000 times (H-index 91). Current research focuses on molecular mechanisms, biomarkers and therapeutic targets in cavernous angiomas (cerebral vascular malformations), the pathobiology of brain hemorrhage, and minimally invasive techniques for treating hemorrhagic stroke.
Dr. Awad's research has been funded continuously from the National Institutes of Health since 1998, including a prestigious midcareer development grant in patient-oriented research (2000-2005), and current active R01, P01 and U01 funding through 2025. From 2016 to 2020, he served on the United States National Advisory Council for Neurological Disorders and Stroke. In 2019, he was elected to the Association of American Physicians.
www.issamawad.com
www.uchicagomedicine.org/ccm
www.uchicagomedicine.org/hht
http://safadiprogram.uchicago.edu