Nir Lipsman, MD, PhD

Dr. Nir Lipsman is a neurosurgeon and senior scientist at Sunnybrook Research Institute and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and an Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto. He is the Chief of the Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program at Sunnybrook, where he holds the Harquail Family Endowed Chair in Neuromodulation. He co-leads the Focused Ultrasound Centre of Excellence, where over the last 10 years he has led several world-first clinical trials of MR-guided focused ultrasound (FUS) for novel indications. These include among the world’s first experience of FUS in essential tremor, obsessive compulsive disorder and depression as well as global-first trials of FUS-enhanced drug delivery in primary and secondary brain tumours, Alzheimer’s Disease, ALS and Parkinson’s disease.

Dr. Lipsman has published over 200 peer-reviewed papers and textbook chapters, including in The Lancet and New England Journal of Medicine. The recipient of several international recognitions, including the FUS Foundations Ferenc Jolesz Award for Excellence, Dr. Lipsman was also selected in 2020 as one of Canada’s Top 40 under 40. Together with a group of incredibly talented researchers, investigators, and students, Dr. Lipsman is committed to improving our understanding of brain disease, and developing the next generation of brain therapeutics.