Sylvia Asa, M.D., Ph.D., Medical Director of Toronto Medical Laboratories and Pathologist-in-Chief at the University Health Network, is a Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto. She received her medical and post-doctorate degrees from the University of Toronto and completed her internship in internal medicine at Toronto General Hospital and the University of Toronto. She received her residency training in pathology at Mount Sinai Hospital, St. Michael's Hospital and the Toronto General Hospital, all affiliated with the University of Toronto. She subsequently was a research fellow in the Department of Pathology at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto.

Professor Beckers has studied pituitary tumor pathology for decades. Since 1980 he has treated more than 2300 pituitary patients. Has published studies in numerous medical journals. His doctoral studies in1986 were titled, "Contribution to the study of etiology, pathophysiology and treatment of pituitary tumors." His research has focused on Familial Isolated Pituitary Adenomas (FIPA), mutations in the LH Beta gene, anti-cancer immunotherapy (particularly for parathyroid cancer), and the prevalence of pituitary adenomas.

In 1987, Dr. Beckers founded the Belgian Pituitary Study Group. He is an active member of the office of the French Pituitary Club. He frequently speaks at medical conferences in Europe, Canada and the U-S. He is the author or co-author of more than 150 scientific articles.

Since 1990, he has been interested in type one polyendocrinopathies. Since 1992 he has been vice president of the French Study Group for Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia.

He has done quite a bit of work in the area of thyroid health, and was the first to use fine needle aspiration at CHU in 1989. He has since taken part in more than 2000 such procedures, leading to a much easier diagnosis of thyroid cancers.

Dr. Beckers has served as Secretary (1998-99) and the President (1999-2001) and then Past President (2001-2003) of the Belgian Endocrine Society. He is a member of the European Neuroendocrine Association. He is vice-president of the French Endocrine Tumor Society and became president of that organization's scientific board at their meeting in 2006.

When asked about the future of endocrinology, Dr. Beckers suggests that, more and more, pituitary tumors will be diagnosed quickly, treated easily, efficiently and if possible, in a non-invasive manner. He adds that a better understanding of the mechanisms that generate pituitary tumors will permit medical progress, not just in this field, but in every field of medicine.

Dr. Chrousos is Professor and Chairman of Pediatrics at the Athens University Medical School. He has focused his research on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and has extensively studied the neuroendocrine alterations associated with mood disorders, sleep, pain perception, and immune function. His laboratory is recognized worldwide for its work on the glucocorticoid signaling system, diseases of the HPA axis, such as Cushing's syndrome, and the physiologic and molecular mechanisms of stress. Dr. Chrousos has contributed immensely to the biomedical literature and his work has provided new insights into a variety of chronic complex disorders. He has written over 1000 scientific papers and his work has been cited in about 35,000 other scientific articles, an irrefutable testimony to the importance and influence of his research. He is one of the most cited physician scientists in the world (ISI highly cited). His work has educated a broad community of physicians and scientists around the world. As a mentor, he has helped to develop the careers of many young physicians and scientists, several of whom are now professors and chairpersons in Europe, the United States, Australia and Latin America. An oustanding teacher, he has had a number of visiting professorships and given prestigious lectures throughout the world. Dr. Chrousos has received numerous national and international awards for his work, including election to membership in the prestigious American Society of Clinical Investigation and the Association of American Physicians. He was recently inducted as a master of both the American College of Endocrinology and the American College of Physicians.

Dr. Couldwell is Chief of Neurosurgery and a Professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Dr. Couldwell is also co-director of the Brain Tumor Program at the Huntsman Cancer Institute.

Dr. Couldwell specializes in skull base surgery for tumors of the brain and central nervous system. Dr. Couldwell uses the latest diagnostic and imaging technology to perform surgery on tumors that would have been deemed inoperable in the past. This has made an enormous difference in the treatment of tumors of the pituitary gland and sinuses. Dr. Couldwell also specializes in neurovascular surgery.

Dr. Couldwell's research interests include the study of signal transduction (the transfer of genetic material from one cell to another) in the central nervous system and blood vessels in the brain. He is also conducting research on recurrent brain tumors.

Dr. Couldwell graduated with an M.D. and Ph.D. from McGill University in Montreal, Canada in 1984. He moved to USC in Los Angeles for his internship and residency. He taught at USC and the University of North Dakota, and headed up the Department of Neurological Surgery at New York Medical College. Dr. Couldwell joined the University of Utah in 2001.

Dr. Patricia Crock is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at John Hunter Children's Hospital in Australia. She is known for her expertise in lymphocytic hypophysitis and has written extensively on the subject. She has contributed several articles on the subject for the PNA website and Pituitary Patient Resource Guide, and has therefore contributed greatly to the PNA's ability to educate and enlighten. PNA CEO Robert Knutzen first met Dr. Crock about ten years ago in San Diego through Dr. Sylvia Asa, who is on the PNA's Scientific Advisory Board. Mr. Knutzen adds, "Dr. Crock's unfailing courtesy and scholarly demeanor is very reassuring and she has, many times, been a resource of information to parents and patients alike, both from New Zealand and Australia.

Dr. Crock studied medicine at the University of Melbourne in Australia. She completed her internship and residency at St. Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne. She did a fellowship at McGill University/Montreal Children's Hospital in Montreal, Canada. She is board certified in endocrinology. Her primary clinical interests include pediatric endocrinology, Prader-Willi Syndrome, pituitary autoimmunity and autoantibodies, congenital hypopituitarism, and septo-optic dysplasia.

She was part of the team that discovered the gene to a rare form of diabetes, associated with neurodegeneration, called Wolfram syndrome. She is also credited with developing the first immunoblotting (IB) assay for the detection of anti-pituitary autoantibodies as part of a collaboration with the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. Her laboratory is the only one in Australia to run pituitary autoantibody testing for research.

Dr. Crock is active with the Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group, which is a nonprofit that represents pediatric endocrinologist in New Zealand and Australia.

Dr. Crock can be reached at patricia.crock@newcastle.edu.au.

Dr. Ezzat obtained his medical degree from the University of Manitoba, completed his residency training at the Univiversity of Toronto, Mount Sinai Hospital, and his post-doctoral research training in molecular oncology at Cedars-Sinai-UCLA School of Medicine in Los Angeles.

Dr. Ezzat also runs the largest pituitary endocrine practice in Canada. In addition, he is program director at the Freeman Center for Endocrine Oncology, a collaboration between Mt. Sinai Hospital and St. Michael's Hospital, which is dedicated to the study of endocrine tumors.

Dr. Ezzat has authored or co-authored more than 180 original research articles and 30 invited review articles, and he has delivered more than 100 invited lectures. He supervises undergraduate, medical, and graduate students, as well as postdoctoral fellows. He teaches a number of courses, including physiology, biochemistry, developmental biology, and endocrinology.

Dr. Ezzat serves as an Editorial Board member for a number of journals including Endocrinology, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Journal of Endocrinology, Endocrine Practice, and BMJ-Endocrine. He is a regular reviewer for the New England Journal of Medicine and the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Dr. Ezzat has been honored with numerous awards. Most recently, he received the 2008 Senior Scientist award from the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada, the 2006 International Endocrine Society Research Mentor Award, the 2005 Gentle Giant Award, the Pharmacia & Upjohn International Award for Excellence in Published Endocrine Research. He is also the recipient of the Premier's Research Excellence Award, the Novartis Canada Senior Investigator Award, and the Allan Bruce Robertson Young Investigator Award. His work, focusing mainly on the molecular genetics of endocrine cancer, has been funded by the CIHR, the Cancer Research Society, and the Sackler Foundation. He belongs to a number of professional societies, including the Endocrine Society, Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), the Pituitary Society, the American College of Physicians, and the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada.

Dr. Ezzat is equally committed to patient care and education. In 1990, he co-founded the Pituitary Network Association and has been the Editor-in-Chief of the Pituitary Patient Resource Guide, a reference book published by the Pituitary Network Association designed for patients that has received world-wide recognition and is now in its fourth edition. He has filled a similar role with the Thyroid Cancer Survivor (Thyrvor) and the North American Carcinoid Group.

• B.A./B.SC., UNIVERSITY OF DIJON
• M.D., UNIVERSITY OF LYONS
• PH.D., EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND SURGERY, UNIVERSITY OF MONTREAL
• NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES, 1974
• THE GAIRDNER INTERNATIONAL AWARD, 1974
• LASKER AWARD IN BASIC SCIENCES, 1975
• AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, 1976
• THE DICKSON PRIZE IN MEDICINE, 1976
• PASSANO AWARD IN MEDICAL SCIENCES, 1976
• NATIONAL MEDAL OF SCIENCE
• NOBEL PRIZE, 1977
• THE SALK INSTITUTE FACULTY MEMBER

Roger Guillemin, interim president and distinguished professor, was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1977 for discoveries that laid the foundation for brain hormone research. His work brought to light an entire new class of substances shown to be important for the regulation of growth, development, reproduction and responses to stress. The impact of his studies has been profound for a variety of diseases and disorders, including thyroid diseases, problems of infertility, diabetes, and several types of tumors.

One of these hormones, called growth-hormone releasing factor, is used to treat growth deficiencies in children; another, called somatostatin, is used to control tumors of the pituitary gland. Dr. Guillemin was also among the first to isolate endorphins, brain molecules known to act as natural opiates. Following the isolation of endorphins, his work with cellular growth factors (CGFs), in addition to inhibins and activins, led to the recognition of multiple physiological functions and developmental mechanisms.

Since his retirement from the active pursuit of science in 1989, Dr. Guillemin has shifted his long-standing expertise with computers from science to art. He is using the Macintosh computer to create images/paintings that are eventually transferred to paper or canvas.

Dr. Laws received his bachelor's degree from Princeton University with honors in Economics and Sociology in the Special Program in American Civilization, and then attended the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland receiving the M.D. in 1963. He did his surgical internship and neurosurgical residency at Johns Hopkins under A. Earl Walker. After completing his residency, he joined the faculty at the Johns Hopkins medical school with a primary appointment in pediatric neurosurgery. He subsequently joined the staff of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota where ultimately he became Professor of Neurosurgery and developed major interests in pituitary surgery and epilepsy surgery along with a continuing interest in the metabolism and pathophysiology of primary brain tumors. In 1987 he became Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurosurgery at the George Washington University in Washington, DC, and in 1992 joined the faculty of the University of Virginia as Professor of Neurosurgery and Professor of Medicine, establishing a Neuro-Endocrine Center there. He joined the faculty at Stanford University in 2007 where he served as Surgical Director of the Pituitary/Neuroendocrine Center there. Currently, he is Director of the Pituitary Tumor Center at the Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston. During his surgical career he has operated upon more than 7,500 brain tumors, of which 5,000 have been pituitary lesions.

Dr. Laws completed his term as President of the American College of Surgeons, and has served as President of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies, President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, Editor of Neurosurgery, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation for International Education in Neurosurgery, Director of the American Board of Neurological Surgery, President of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and President of the Pituitary Society. He has authored over 500 scientific papers and book chapters, and 13 books.

In 2005 he was elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Science. He remains actively involved in surgery and in pituitary and Neuroendocrine research. He has been involved with the PNA for more than 10 years, and is dedicated to its goals of enhancing the care of patients with pituitary disease. He is particularly proud of having received the "Gentle Giant" award from the organization.

Dr. van der Lely is Chief and Professor of Clinical Endocrinology at the Department of Medicine at the Erasmus MC in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Dr. van der Lely is also Scientific Director of the Erasmus Institute of Neuro-endocrinology (ERINE) in Rotterdam. . Dr. van der Lely is an expert in acromegaly and in excessive growth hormones. His recent work has focused on ghrelin, a peptide released by the stomach that affects growth hormone. He has published his research extensively and serves as an editor for a number of medical journals, including Clinical Endocrinology (Oxford), the Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, Clinical Interventions in Aging, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism and Nature Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

B.A., YALE UNIVERSITY
MD,CM MCGILL UNIVERSITY
NEUROSURGERY RESIDENCY AT THE MONTREAL NEUROLOGICAL INSTITUTE
MEDICAL STAFF FELLOWSHIP, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH/NINCDS
SENIOR MEMBER OF THE FACULTY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF NEUROSURGERY, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS M. D. ANDERSON CANCER CENTER

Ian McCutcheon learned pituitary surgery directly from Jules Hardy, the pioneer of modern transsphenoidal techniques, and furthered his interest in pituitary disease during research work under Edward Oldfield at the NIH. He then began practice at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where he has conducted a broad practice in neurosurgical oncology with an emphasis on pituitary tumors, brain tumors, and tumors associated with neurofibromatosis. His laboratory studies have focused on the role of growth factors, most importantly IGF-I, in the development of meningiomas and other intracranial tumors. He was the first surgeon to perform gene therapy for brain tumor in the western half of the US, and currently pursues work on stem cells in meningiomas, cell motility, and nanoparticles as therapeutic agents for tumors. He has published over 100 papers and book chapters and has edited three books.

Gail L. Rosseau, M.D., is Chief of Surgery at the Neurologic and Orthopedic Institute of Chicago (NOIC) and Director of skull base surgery services at the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN) in Chicago, Illinois. She is a member of the department of neurosurgery at Rush Medical College, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois. She is board certified and has been an examiner for the American Board of Neurological Surgery.

Her practice includes a wide range of neurosurgery, with special expertise in caring for patients with cranial base disorders. This includes extensive experience with pituitary tumors, meningiomas, acoustic neuromas, and head and neck malignancies. She is the author of dozens of papers, numerous invited lectures and courses in these topics.

Dr. Rosseau did her neurosurgical residency training at George Washington University in Washington, DC. after graduating from medical school at that institution. She completed a fellowship in cranial base and microvascular surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. She writes and speaks often both in the U.S. and abroad on neurosurgical topics. Her most frequent subjects include innovative treatments for patients for pituitary tumors, trigeminal neuralgia, meningiomas and normal pressure hydrocephalus. She was a pioneer in the use of minimally invasive endoscopic surgery for treatment of pituitary tumors. Her current research funding is for clinical trials in breast cancer metastasis and idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus.

Dr. Rosseau is the recipient of many honors and awards, including Chicago Woman Mentor of the Year and the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/American College of Surgeons Health Policy Fellowship. She has been listed in Best Doctors in America, Who's Who in America and the Consumer Research Council's Guide to Top Surgeons. She has served on the FDA Advisory Council for Neurological Devices. She has served in a number of leadership positions in organized neurosurgery both nationally and internationally. Dr. Rosseau is frequently quoted in news articles relating to neurological sciences and health. She has appeared recently on the public broadcasting network medical program, Second Opinion and 60 Minutes II. She has appeared on national and local network television and radio programs, as well as print media.

She devotes considerable time to philanthropic endeavors. She is the volunteer coordinator of the Foundation for International Education in Neurosurgery, which sends volunteer neurosurgeons to the developing world. She is on the Board of Directors of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies Foundation, which raises funds and donations-in-kind to provide equipment for neurosurgical services in the developing world. She has launched a program in Religious Pluralism in Chicago to improve interfaith relations.

With her children, Natalie, age 13 and Brendan, age 11, she has launched a head and spine injury prevention initiative for children in French-speaking Africa. She provides ongoing leadership to a number of people interested in the neurosciences as a career. She and her husband, Rick, an orthopedic surgeon, enjoy history, French language and culture, and marathon running.

Dr. Peter Snyder is an eminent endocrinologist and Professor of Medicine at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Snyder serves on the PNA's Scientific Advisory Panel and received the prestigious PNA Gentle Giant award in 2005.

Dr. Snyder did his undergraduate work at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. He attended Harvard Medical School and did his residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. He did his fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, part of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia, PA. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism.

According to PNA CEO Robert Knutzen, "Dr. Snyder is widely known for his very studious and education-oriented research. His and his University's contribution to medicine, via modern-day technology (the internet), is of immense proportions. There really is no excuse for a doctor to be uninformed anymore on recent major medical findings. Dr. Snyder and his colleagues are updating the world on a regular basis. Though his expertise is endocrinology, his knowledge spans many specialties. He is a great credit to the medical profession and the PNA is fortunate to have him available as one of our Scientific Advisors. The Gentle Giant award given him by the PNA was well deserved and very appropriate."

Dr. Snyder's research interests include the development of pituitary tumors (particularly gonadotrophs), and the effects of testosterone and growth hormone on bone and muscle.