William Thorell, MD, has been named the new chair of the UNMC Department of Neurosurgery in the College of Medicine.
The appointment is effective July 1.
Dr. Thorell, a neurosurgeon who describes himself as “a teacher,” said he was excited to be taking on this new role, noting that he has been part of the department since it was a division of the surgery department and he was a resident.
“That was when I met Dr. Lyal Leibrock for the first time. I have a great deal of loyalty to and love for this department, so I’m excited but also humbled,” Dr. Thorell said.
Dr. Thorell serves as residency program director for the department, as well as co-director of the Stroke and Neurovascular Center at Nebraska Medicine, which he helped develop. He is a UNMC College of Medicine graduate who also did his internship and residency at UNMC, as well as a fellowship in endovascular neurosurgery at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.
His clinical work includes helping patients with trauma, tumors and peripheral disorders, and he is one of the most experienced neurosurgeons in the country specializing in complicated vascular disorders of the central nervous system, such as acute stroke, subarachnoid hemorrhage from cerebral aneurysms, vascular malformations (such as arteriovenous malformations and cerebral cavernous malformations), and occlusive disease of the carotid and vertebral arteries. Dr. Thorell also helps care for children with vascular diseases of the brain and spinal cord.
His long association with the division-turned-department, dating to his internship in 1996, has given him a quiet pride in its strengths, which he lists as the clinical skills of the faculty, the strong residency program and a significantly improved research arm that continues to grow.
“We’re obviously a young department (the department was created in 2019), but we’re really rounding out,” he said. He credited inaugural chair Aviva Abosch, MD, whom he will be replacing, for elevating the department to new levels during her tenure.
Dr. Thorell said that, as he takes the role of chair, his goal is to have the department provide the highest level of clinical care and education while pushing forward the frontiers of neurosurgery through cutting-edge research.
“First and foremost, we’re going to take excellent care of our patients,” he said. “That is the person who’s in front of you, but it also requires a longer view – training the next generation, pushing the boundaries with innovative treatments backed by research.
“When I look at what was considered state-of-the-art knowledge when I was a resident, there is critical information that has proven to be long lasting, but there’s been quite a bit of progress, and there’s still quite a way to go. We want to be part of that progress.”
Dr. Thorell pointed to the work of J. Jay Keegan, MD in dermatomes, patterns of sensory nerves in humans, and how the peripheral nerves and the spinal nerves are distributed. Eventually, Dr. Keegan worked with UNMC colleague Frederic Garrett, MD, to produce an influential map of dermatomes.
“At the time, such a map was a fairly revolutionary idea,” Dr. Thorell said. “Now, they’re in every neurosurgery textbook. That’s a long-lasting legacy.”
He also hopes to work with other investigators in forward-looking research, he said, pointing to existing work the department is doing with Tammy Kielian, PhD, of the UNMC Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology.
“When you take the best of the talents of the department and other people at the university, you can get a real synergy,” he said. “Looking ahead, I’m excited by what we can achieve.”