Issue link: http://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/602475
AN INTERNATIONALLY RESPECTED pediatric neurosurgeon, Dr. Jallo joined the Hopkins faculty in 2003. He succeeded Benjamin Carson, M.D., as head of the division of pediatric neurosurgery in 2013. Dr. Jallo earned his medical degree at the University of Virginia Medical School and completed his residency in neurosurgery at New York University Medical Center and a fellowship in pediatric neurosurgery at Beth Israel Medical Center, Institute for Neurology and Neurosurgery in New York. Dr. Jallo then served as assistant professor of neurosurgery and pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine before joining the Hopkins faculty. Welcome, Dr. Jallo. You have had an impressive career at Johns Hopkins. Can you share with us the focus of your research up to now and your areas of surgical expertise? My research focus is brain stem and spinal cord tumors. We developed new models for these rare tumors. My laboratory then utilized local delivery techniques to deliver chemotherapy and radiation sensitizers for these tumors to see if we could prolong survival with minimal neurological deficits. My clinical expertise, aside from these rare tumors, is epilepsy and minimally invasive keyhole surgery on children. Keyhole surgery is the concept of reaching the brain through the nose or eyebrow with small openings. It has been very successful, and I'm pleased to be able to offer the procedure to children in the state of Florida. I also hope to advance the surgical treatment for children who have refractory seizures, which are unresponsive to medications. What convinced you to move your family to Florida and take on the role of director of the IBPS at All Children's? I have been looking forward to joining the excellent team in place at All Children's and working together at the ground level to create a new, pediatric-focused neuroscience institute within the Johns Hopkins Health System. It is exciting to be part of leading and developing the Institute into one of the best—if not the world's leading—centers of neurosciences and brain protection. Whether focusing on head injury, tumors, seizures, anxiety or depression, we are developing the infrastructure and recruiting physicians and researchers from Baltimore and around the globe who want to help develop and bring forward advances in brain protection in children. All Children's has a strong clinical foundation with the desire to develop the research portion for the Institute. It would have been comfortable to finish my career at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, but I am very excited by the opportunity to have a larger impact in Florida. With the ongoing academic transformation at All Children's, the opportunities to effect real change are significant. As for moving to Florida, that part was easy. We have family right here on the west coast, so everyone is extremely happy. George Jallo, M.D. George Jallo, M.D., professor of neurosurgery, pediatrics and oncology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, joined All Children's Hospital Johns Hopkins Medicine in September as director of the Institute for Brain Protection Sciences (IBPS). We recently sat down with Dr. Jallo and asked about his plans for the Institute. 4 All Children's Hospital Foundation | www.givetoallkids.org 4 All Children's Hospital Foundation | www.givetoallkids.org ■ Staff Q & A