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Elliot K. Fishman, M.D. Professorship Dedication

12/03/2019
Published in Radiology Update - 2019

The Elliot K. Fishman, M.D. Professorship in Radiology was established in the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science in 2018 by the generosity of multiple donors led by an anonymous donor, as well as Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, and Edwin Catmull, Ph.D., a co-founder of Pixar and president of Disney Animation Studios, in honor of their lifelong friendship with Dr. Fishman.

Dr. Fishman has worked with the lead donors over the course of his career in developing new techniques and technologies in visualization, 3D imaging, and most recently cinematic rendering. It is the donors’ wish that Dr. Fishman’s legacy and commitment to innovation continue in perpetuity in order to ease pain, provide hope and save lives. Their investment will have a transformative impact on the lives of patients for generations to come.

More than 100 colleagues, family and friends attended the professorship dedication ceremony on Oct. 15, 2018, to witness the installation of Dr. Fishman as the inaugural recipient. Fittingly, the ceremony was held in the William H. Welch Medical Library, in front of the 1906 John Singer Sargent portrait of Johns Hopkins’ four founding doctors: William Welch, William Stewart Halsted, William Osler and Howard Kelly. These pioneers laid the foundation that has fostered Johns Hopkins Medicine’s distinctive creative and innovative environment for medical discovery.

Throughout his career, Dr. Fishman has embodied this spirit.

Radiologists play a critical role in the diagnosis, care and treatment of patients, and as a radiologist, Dr. Fishman has impacted and directed the care of countless patients and saved many lives. He is consistently ranked as a top radiologist among the more than 54,000 radiologists worldwide.

“To have my name forever linked to the Department of Radiology in perpetuity is an honor, alongside Russell Morgan, Martin Donner, Bill Brody and others,” he says. “The dedication ceremony highlighted the importance of meaningful friendships.”

Dr. Fishman serves as director of diagnostic imaging and body CT in the Department of Radiology and Radiological Science and professor of radiology, surgery, urology and oncology at Johns Hopkins. His career has encompassed several main areas, including computer applications in radiology, advanced clinical applications of CT scanning and medical education. He became involved in the development of 3D medical imaging in the mid-1980s and continued his work in the field with Pixar, Apple and Nvidia. Over the past 30 years, he has helped develop 3D imaging to its current status as an important clinical tool.

He has also been a leader in developing new applications for CT, including CT angiography for vascular and oncologic applications. Dr. Fishman serves as principal investigator of the Felix Project for Early Detection of Pancreatic Cancer, focused on using deep learning and artificial intelligence for medical imaging. His work in CT has resulted in more than 1,300 peer-reviewed publications, and he has co-authored 10 textbooks. His research team has been one of the leading groups in developing new techniques and technologies in visualization, post-processing and education.

Dr. Fishman has expertise in computer- and web-based education. He developed the website www.ctisus.com, which has more than 300,000 users, as well as its Facebook, Instagram and Twitter versions, which have more than one million followers from over 190 countries. Dr. Fishman and his team have also developed 16 programs for the iPad and eight for the iPhone for the App Store. For the past three decades, he has been the co-founder of HipGraphics Inc., a leader in 3D software development.

The dedication ceremony featured remarks from Catmull; Huang; Ronald Daniels, president of The Johns Hopkins University; Paul B. Rothman, M.D., the Frances Watt Baker, M.D., and Lenox D. Baker, Jr., M.D. Dean of the Medical Faculty and CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine; and Karen M. Horton, M.D, the Martin W. Donner Professor of Radiology and director of the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science.

“We are truly honored to have the Fishman Professorship in the Department of Radiology,” noted Dr. Horton. “An endowed professorship provides the stability and flexibility needed for our faculty to take advantage of the important opportunities for innovation, research and treatment of patients. The importance of an endowed professorship cannot be overstated, as it is often critical in recruiting and retaining our top faculty, and it helps us maintain our continued excellence, as exemplified by Elliot Fishman, the inaugural holder. Most importantly, this is a significant way to celebrate Elliot’s accomplishments in the department and the field of radiology.”

Throughout his career, Dr. Fishman has been an innovator who has helped to redefine radiology and reimagine a better future for patients and their families. His extraordinary career has been defined by technical brilliance, innovative thinking, collaboration with other disciplines and a determination to seek a better approach.