Andres Lozano

Andres Lozano remembers the most satisfying case of his career – helping a boy with a genetic form of dystonia which had twisted his body to the point where he was only able to crawl on his stomach. While he didn’t respond to drugs, he responded wonderfully to deep brain stimulation. Three months after surgery, he was walking like a normal child. He’s now a college student leading a normal life.

Lozano is a pioneer in deep brain stimulation. His team has mapped out areas of the human brain and pioneered novel surgical approaches to treat disorders like Parkinson’s disease, depression, dystonia, anorexia, Huntington’s and Alzheimer’s disease. Lozano is the chairman of neurosurgery at the University of Toronto, and he also holds both the R.R. Tasker Chair in Functional Neurosurgery at the Krembil Neuroscience Centre and a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Neuroscience. Additionally, in 2014 he was appointed to the rank of University Professor, the highest and most prestigious academic rank at the University of Toronto. He obtained his MD degree from the University of Ottawa and his PhD in Neurobiology and neurosurgical training from McGill University. He received postdoctoral training in movement disorders at Queen Square, London, UK and in cell and molecular biology in Toronto. He was appointed to the University of Toronto in 1991, and in 1999 he became the youngest individual to be appointed Full Professor in the Department of Surgery.

Lozano has over 400 publications, serves on the board of several international organizations and is a founding member of the scientific advisory board of the Michael J. Fox Foundation. He has received a number of awards, including the Olivecrona Medal and the Pioneer in Medicine award, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and has received the Order of Spain.