MANHASSET, NY -- The North Shore-LIJ Health System today announced the appointments of Michael Schulder, MD, and Jana Fox, MD, as co-directors of the newly established North Shore-LIJ Center for Radiosurgery and Stereotactic Radiation, located at North Shore University Hospital.

The center’s program features the Novalis robotic stereotactic radiation delivery technology.  Stereotactic radiation is a specialized external beam radiation therapy that uses focused radiation beams targeting a well-defined tumor, detailed imaging and three-dimensional treatment planning to deliver a radiation dose with extreme accuracy.  With Novalis, stereotactic radiosurgery does not require the application of a stereotactic frame, and can be given in up to five separate sessions.

“I have been performing radiosurgery for nearly 15 years with a variety of technologies,” said Dr. Schulder. “With the formation of this new center and the Novalis system, we will be providing patients with the most comprehensive, individualized and state-of-the-art stereotactic radiation treatment available anywhere.”

Dr. Schulder and Dr. Fox will work collaboratively on cases involving brain and spine lesions, as well as neurologic conditions, with the help of a multidisciplinary team that includes radiation therapists, nurses and physicist. “Being able to treat patients with a higher dose of radiation within a shorter amount of time and with fewer treatments is a significant improvement in the treatment of many cancerous tumors,” said Dr. Fox.

Dr. Schulder is vice chairman of neurosurgery at North Shore University Hospital, as well as director of the Harvey Cushing Brain Tumor Institute. He is an internationally renowned expert in the diagnosis and treatment of brain and skull-base tumors; he received advanced training in stereotactic radiosurgery at both the University of Florida and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital of Harvard Medical School.  In addition, Dr. Schulder had advanced training in stereotactic neuro-oncology, also at Brigham and Women’s Hospital of Harvard Medical School. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles and abstracts, and makes presentations frequently at national and international meetings.  He is the editor of the Handbook of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery, an editorial board member of Neurosurgery and Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and a reviewer for other peer-reviewed journals.

Dr. Fox is an attending physician in the Department of Radiation Medicine at North Shore University Hospital.  Before joining North Shore-LIJ in 2008, she served as chief resident in radiation oncology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore where she participated in research about stereotactic radiosurgery for brain metastases, as well as lung cancer.  Prior to her residency training, she performed clinical research and published manuscripts on radiation therapy for lung cancer at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

About North Shore-LIJ Health System
The nation's third largest, non-profit, secular healthcare system, the North Shore-LIJ Health System cares for people of all ages throughout Long Island, Queens and Staten Island – a service area encompassing more than five million people. The health system consists of 14 hospitals, 17 long-term care facilities, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, three trauma centers, five home health agencies, a hospice network and dozens of outpatient centers. In addition, North Shore-LIJ is partnering with Hofstra University to develop a new medical school. North Shore-LIJ’s owned facilities house about 5,000 beds, employ about 10,000 nurses and have affiliations with more than 7,000 physicians. Its workforce of about 38,000 is the largest on Long Island and the ninth largest in New York City.  For more information, go to www.northshorelij.com.