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Dacey receives Cushing Medal from neurosurgery society

By Judy Martin Finch |
Washington University School of Medicine
Ralph G. Dacey Jr., MD, speaks at the recent annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. The association... Ralph G. Dacey Jr., MD, speaks at the recent annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. The association awarded him the Cushing Medal for distinguished work in neurosurgery.

Ralph G. Dacey Jr., MD, has been awarded the Harvey Cushing Medal by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). He was honored with the medal, the association’s most prestigious award, for his many years of outstanding leadership, dedication and contributions to the field of neurosurgery.

The medal – named in honor of the father of modern neurosurgery – was awarded May 3 at the AANS annual meeting in Chicago.

“It means a lot to me to be recognized by my peers,” said Dacey, the Henry G. and Edith R. Schwartz Professor and head of the Department of Neurosurgery.

Dacey, who is also neurosurgeon-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, is known for his work on the clinical management of cerebral aneurysms and brain tumors as well as how blood vessels in the brain control blood flow, which is important in a variety of neurosurgical diseases.

He counts among his achievements the recruitment of outstanding clinicians and researchers to his department.

“We’ve added great faculty and trained superb residents,” said Dacey. “We have some really innovative research being done here – for example, on the effective management of malignant brain tumors and spinal cord injuries, and on brain computer interfaces and complex cerebrovascular conditions.”

Dacey is a former chairman of the American Board of Neurological Surgery and has served as president of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the American Academy of Neurological Surgeons, and the Society of Neurological Surgeons. He was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 2010 and is an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Founded in 1931 as the Harvey Cushing Society, the AANS is a scientific and educational association with more than 8,000 members worldwide. The AANS is dedicated to advancing the specialty of neurological surgery to provide the highest quality of neurosurgical care to patients.