UMSOM Names Dr. Graeme F. Woodworth as the Howard M. Eisenberg, MD Distinguished Professor of Neurosurgery

Professorship Recognizes Extraordinary Leadership, Clinical Excellence, and Innovation in the Advancement of Neurosurgery

On April 11, 2023, before a large audience of University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) faculty and staff, family members, friends, and distinguished invited guests, Graeme F. Woodworth, MD, FACS, a highly recognized neurosurgeon and physician-scientist who specializes in the treatment of brain tumors, image-guided therapies and focused ultrasound treatments, was invested as the inaugural Howard M. Eisenberg, MD Distinguished Professor of Neurosurgery. Dr. Woodworth is a Professor and Chair in the Department of Neurosurgery at UMSOM. He also serves as Director of the Brain Tumor Program and the Translational Therapeutics Research Group (TTRG) in the Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Maryland.

Dr. Woodworth’s research focuses on developing new therapeutic strategies to improve the treatment and outcomes of patients with malignant brain tumors. A core component of his research has been centered on the concept of using the operating room as a portal for discovery and opportunity to improve the understanding of and therapeutic delivery for brain tumors. Dr. Woodworth's team is leading the first-in-human clinical trials of MRI-guided focused ultrasound-mediated blood brain barrier disruption (MRgFUS-BBBD) for brain tumors in the United States.

William F. Regine, MD, FACR, FASTRO, FACRO, the Isadore & Fannie Schneider Foxman Chair and Professor of Radiation Oncology, served as the master of ceremonies, along with UMSOM Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor.

“Today, we get to honor Dr. Graeme Woodworth on the occasion of his investiture as the inaugural Howard M. Eisenberg Distinguished Professor of Neurosurgery,” said Dean Gladwin. “We will also recognize Dr. Eisenberg for whom the professorship was named. This endowed professorship we are celebrating today was established through an anonymous donor to honor Dr. Howard M. Eisenberg, one of the nation’s top neurosurgeons and preeminent experts in traumatic brain injury and the blood brain barrier.”

Among the speakers at the ceremony were Howard M. Eisenberg, MD, the R.K. Thompson, MD Professor of Neurosurgery; Beth Fisher, Co-founder and President of the Keep Punching Foundation for glioblastoma research; and Rafael Tamargo, MD, the Walter E. Dandy Professor of Neurosurgery and Vice Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Recalling the process of recruiting his replacement as chair, Dr. Eisenberg said, “About 10 years ago, I thought I found the missing piece—a potential successor. Knowing a chair cannot recruit the next chair but should have a succession plan, Graeme became my plan. Graeme had the qualities of leadership. His ideas about research were important and clear. He had the experience and the background.”

“Dr. Woodworth spends his days treating brain cancer patients and when he is not at work, he is supporting the mission. That is total dedication,” said Ms. Fisher. “And that is what distinguishes Dr. Eisenberg, Dr. Woodworth, and the entire team in the Department of Neurosurgery. You are excellent partners in the battle to knock out brain cancer.”

Dr. Tamargo remarked, “Graeme has always had the wisdom of an older man in the body of a young person. Not only has he been blessed with outstanding dexterity but also with impeccable insight and judgment. I am delighted that his numerous gifts have been recognized by the leadership of the University of Maryland.”

In taking the podium, Dr. Woodworth thanked all present for their support, and recognized the University of Maryland, Baltimore as a leading institution within the local community and nation.

“The University of Maryland here in Baltimore has the potential to be exceptional. We have the human resources to be truly special – a beacon and new model for excellence and innovation in academic health care,” Dr. Woodworth said. “It is very exciting to be part of this. What Howard has created in the Department will play a big role in that future. The professorship represents the belief and investment that we, and others, have committed to that future.”