2010 SIR Dotter Lecture and Gold Medal Recipients

26th Annual Dr. Charles T. Dotter Lecture

This award honors one of the founding fathers of interventional radiology, Dr. Charles T. Dotter. Selection by the SIR president is based on extraordinary contributions to the field, dedicated service to the Society and distinguished career achievements in interventional radiology. Honorees deliver the lecture at SIR's Annual Scientific Meeting. The Dr. Charles T. Dotter Lecture is made possible via funding from SIR Foundation.

The 2010 Dr. Charles T. Dotter Lecture will be delivered at 2:50 pm in Ballroom B/C on Monday, March 15.

Michael C. Soulen, MD, FSIR

According to SIR President Brian F. Stainken, MD, FSIR, "Michael Soulen, MD, FSIR, is among the few who have the discipline, talent and interest to take a then novel procedure like transarterial chemoembolization in the 1980's, refine the approach, and use it as a springboard to develop a new clinical subspecialty discipline: interventional oncology. His is a seminal contribution; when we say that IR has changed medicine, we are harvesting the benefits of the work of people like Dr. Soulen."

After receiving his BS at Yale and MD at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Soulen continued his training with an internship in medicine at Francis Scott Key Medical Center in Baltimore, MD, followed by a radiology residency at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, where he was chief resident. He concluded his medical training with a two-year clinical and research fellowship in cardiovascular/interventional radiology at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA.

After fellowship, he attained successive faculty appointments at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine as assistant professor, associate professor and professor of radiology and surgery. He has balanced his work in academia with hospital appointments at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the Penn-Presbyterian Medical Center.

Much of his career has been devoted to research in interventional radiology, having received grants for 20 different research projects. An active member of the Society, he has served on the executive council and was the 1999 Annual Scientific Meeting chair. He also served as the Practice and Professional Affairs Councilor and on the CME and Council Advisory Committees. From 2004-2008, Dr. Soulen served as the SIR Foundation board director of research education. "Throughout his roles in the Society and the SIR Foundation, Mike has served with typical selflessness and generosity," says Dr. Stainken. "The selection of a Dotter Lecturer is complicated," Dr. Stainken notes. "It is recognition of a contribution to our field, endorsement of the exemplary stature of a respected peer and an opportunity to find that individual who is ready and qualified to deliver an impactful message. The concept and promise of interventional oncology owes much to the focus and talent of interventional radiologists like Dr. Soulen."

2010 SIR Gold Medalists

The Society of Interventional Radiology's Gold Medal is awarded to a member who has helped ensure the future of interventional radiology by advancing the quality of medicine and patient care.

The Gold Medal presentation will take place between 1:30 and 3:30 pm in Ballroom B/C on Tuesday, March 16.

John D. Fulco, MD, FSIR

After attending the Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, John Fulco, MD, FSIR, began his scientific education in 1965 with a BA in biology/chemistry from Long Island University, New York. He went on to earn his Doctor of Medicine and Surgery degree at the University of Bologna, Italy, before returning to New York for an internship and radiology residency at Long Island Jewish-Hillside Medical Center (Downstate Medical School). He was intern of the year there in 1974-75 and, in his final year, served as chief resident. He completed his fellowship in cardiovascular and interventional radiology at Tufts-New England Medical Center, with a focus on angiography. He subsequently received both diagnostic and interventional certificates. He then returned to New York and is past chief of staff of the Ellis Health System and past president of the Medical Society of the County of Schenectady. He has received tremendous recognition for his accomplishments throughout his career, including the Medical Society of the State of New York's President's Citation-in recognition of dedicated community service (November 1990), and the SIR Service Award for his work as SIRPAC chair (2005-08).

Dr. Fulco has shown true commitment to furthering Society goals from the time he first became an SIR member. He has served in a range of roles, including sitting on 10 Society committees and subcommittees that govern issues from hospital outreach to long range planning. He has, perhaps, made his greatest impact as SIR representative on the AMA house of delegates (HOD). Combining this role with his position as chair of the AMA section council on radiology, Dr. Fulco has ensured that the issues faced by interventional radiology are understood and addressed by the AMA, and that the Society continues to be well-represented in the HOD.

Those who have worked with Dr. Fulco in service to the Society know him for both his boundless energy and his unique gift for political engagement. George A. Fueredi, MD, FSIR, who has served as an SIR alternate delegate to the AMA with Dr. Fulco over the past 10 years, says, "In that time, I have seen countless examples of Dr. Fulco's dedication to and advocacy for SIR and our members. Dr. Fulco has shown all of us that being political is as necessary for our success as being well-read and well-trained."

Brian F. Stainken, MD, FSIR, SIR president, has also worked closely with Dr. Fulco as alternate SIR delegate to the AMA. "Undoubtedly one of John's greatest accomplishments has been the seat at the AMA for the SIR that was ratified in 1991," notes Dr. Stainken. "John's tireless efforts and personal determination prevailed despite a generally unreceptive environment."

Irvin F. Hawkins Jr., MD, FSIR

One of the early members of SCVIR/SIR, Irvin F. Hawkins Jr., MD, FSIR, is internationally recognized today as a pioneer in interventional radiology for his groundbreaking work in needle and catheter design.

After serving as a captain in the U.S. Air Force, Dr. Hawkins completed his residency in general radiology at Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus. In 1970, as a National Institute of Health fellow and special trainee, he completed his fellowship in cardiovascular radiology at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville, where he has since devoted his entire career in interventional radiology. Dr. Hawkins is currently professor of radiology and professor of surgery at the University of Florida College of Medicine.

Dr. Hawkins has received numerous awards for his innovations, including the Silver Medal Award at the annual meeting of the American Roentgen Ray Society in 1983 for his work on CO₂ digital subtraction radiology, and, for the Hawkins-Hunter retrograde percutaneous nephrostomy technique, he received the Grand Champion of Exhibits at the annual meeting of the Association of University Radiologists (Western Section) and Gold Medal Award at the 1984 annual meeting of the American Roentgen Ray Society. He also received the Distinguished Reviewer Award for the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology in 1993. In 2002 he received the ISET First Innovators Award. In 2003 he was awarded the SIR Leaders in Innovation Award.

His impact on the field is truly remarkable. One of the first investigators to show that reduction of catheter size can lower complication rates, Dr. Hawkins is probably best known for his development of carbon dioxide angiography. He is responsible for a number of key developments for which interventional radiology is often not credited, including the development of the first protective device, which is presently used for carotid stent placement, among other procedures. In 1986, his team also developed the first neuro retrievable (detachable) coil system. He is also responsible for developing the Hawkins blunt needle, needle guide, accordion drainage catheter, fine-needle TIPS system, CO₂ bag system and even a specialized needle for breast mass localizations. Each of his innovations—and, in fact, his entire career—was designed to reduce complication rates and make percutaneous procedures safer for patients.

He sought to educate his students not only on interventional radiology but on his approach to innovation, stressing open-minded, creative thinking in approaching cases.

According to S. William Stavropoulos, MD, FSIR, "Dr. Hawkins has inspired a generation of interventional radiologists with his creative open-minded teaching, pioneering research and superb clinical care."

David C. Levin, MD, FSIR

David C. Levin, MD, FSIR, professor and chair emeritus of the department of radiology at Jefferson Medical College and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, first became interested in medicine while serving as a jet fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force after having graduated from Cornell University. He subsequently received his MD from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, then did a surgical internship and radiology residency at the UCLA Medical Center.

During the course of his career in academic radiology, he has held faculty appointments at the New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center in New York City, Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn and Harvard Medical School. While at Harvard, he was head of cardiovascular/interventional radiology at the Brigham and Women's Hospital before being appointed acting chair of that department. He came to Jefferson as radiology chair in 1986 and held that post for 16 years before stepping down at the end of June 2002. Since then, he has served as consultant for several organizations and continues to work in Jefferson's department of radiology doing coronary CT angiography, health services research and teaching.

Dr. Levin has served in a range of leadership positions, including president of the Society of Chairmen of Academic Radiology Departments. He has served as chair for numerous committees of such societies as the Radiological Society of North America and the American College of Radiology. He has been an examiner on the American Board of Radiology oral exams and has been a member of the editorial boards of six radiology journals.

His research interests in the past have included the morphologic aspects of coronary artery stenosis, results of angioplasty and other percutaneous interventions in the treatment of vascular disease and the diagnosis of cardiac and vascular diseases by angiography. His more recent research has focused on economic issues in radiology.

Dr. Levin has received the Gold Medals of many societies, including the RSNA, the American Roentgen Ray Society, the ACR and the Association of University Radiologists. In 2008, an endowed chair was established in his honor at Thomas Jefferson University; henceforth the Chair of the Department of Radiology is to be known as The David C. Levin Professor and Chair of Radiology.

According to A. Van Moore Jr., MD, president of Charlotte Radiology, "Dr. Levin has had a meritorious career in medicine and in radiology and has been a stalwart in interventional radiology from its inception." He adds, "I believe that as a Gold Medal recipient, Dr. Levin will represent the Society extremely well."