Houston Methodist, an affiliate of the Weill Cornell Medical College and Texas A&M Medical College, offers an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited neuropathology fellowship for physicians who have completed pathology, neurology or neurosurgery specialty training and are interested in pursuing a career in neuropathology, neurology, or neurosurgery and related research.

Two two-year fellowship positions are available every academic year under the directorship of Suzanne Powell, MD. The fellowship includes rotations at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas Children’s Hospital, Ben Taub General Hospital and the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences. The fellowship program is supervised by 11 board-certified neuropathologists, a board-certified cytopathologist, and an expert ophthalmic pathologist.

The first year of the program focuses on preparing fellows for the subspecialty board examination from the American Board of Pathology. An extensive and busy surgical neuropathology service at the participating institutions evaluates approximately 2,300 brain tumors (800 at Houston Methodist , 1,400 at MD Anderson) annually, including in-house surgical cases and referral consultations. Fellows receive excellent exposure to neuro-ophthalmic pathology while at Houston Methodist with an internationally recognized ophthalmic pathologist who reviews cases for all institutions in the Texas Medical Center. The autopsy service at Houston Methodist also provides fellows with good training experience, as its cases are heavily weighted toward the examination of neurodegenerative diseases. At MD Anderson, training focuses on neoplastic disease with extensive consultative services, as well as molecular diagnostic neuropathology. The rotation at the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences provides fellows with in-depth exposure to neurotrauma and the opportunity to gain proficiency in evaluating gross neuropathology specimens from adult and pediatric populations with a board-certified neuropathologist on site. Rotations at Texas Children’s Hospital and Ben Taub General Hospital provide additional experience in both adult and pediatric neuropathology, including muscle and nerve biopsies. Fellows will also gain experience with CSF cytologies on all cases at Texas Children’s Hospital, particularly for patients with a history of medulloblastoma.

The second year of the program focuses largely on investigative neuropathology. A minimum of six months during the second year is dedicated to research. During the program, each fellow must participate in at least one research project that results in publication. The participating institutions provide ample opportunities for research. At Houston Methodist, there are opportunities for participation in Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research with the Neurological Institute and Baylor College of Medicine. All contemporary laboratory research approaches are available and used in brain tumor research at M.D. Anderson, including genomics (cDNA arrays), proteomics (protein lysate arrays), molecular and cell biologic techniques, experimental and clinical translational gene therapy techniques, and high-density tissue microarrays.

Training in laboratory management, information systems and quality assurance is included in the program. Fellows are responsible for several case conferences, including brain cutting conferences and neuropathology case conferences at all program sites, as well as Texas Medical Center-wide conferences.

Stipend

Commensurate with level of post-graduate training. For more information, visit our GME Compensation and Benefits page.

Requirements

Candidates must be board-certified or board-eligible in anatomic pathology, anatomic/clinical pathology or have completed training in neurology or neurosurgery. Candidates must hold or be eligible for a Texas Physician in Training Permit or Licensure.

Application Deadline

Applications must be received by January 31st, at least 18 months prior to the start of the intended fellowship year, which begins July 1st. This is unless a candidate is interested in an AP/NP combined program, in which case he/she would apply through ERAS.