What makes a great #neurosurgeon? We set out to answer this question with season four of Barrow Neurosurgery Base Camp. Today, we're bringing you our 10th "trait of greatness" with the season finale: "On Tenacity."
“I think I’ve always just called myself stubborn,” said Anna Huguenard, MD, who trained at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute as a cerebrovascular and skull base fellow. “Whether you call that stubbornness or tenacity, that willingness to just keep coming back is so important to actually becoming a master.”
In the season finale, Barrow #neurosurgery faculty and trainees share personal stories of unwavering determination and reflect on what drives them to keep going—even on the most challenging days.
You’ll also get to hear from the following special guests:
-Fred G. Barker II, MD, Director of Cranial Base Surgery, @MassGeneralNews
-Richard G. Ellenbogen, MD, FACS, Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery, @UWMedicine
-Kevin T. Foley, MD, Chair, @SemmesMurphey Clinic
-@AdamArthurMD, Neurosurgeon, Semmes Murphey Clinic; Chief Medical Officer, @Medtronic
-@DanielYoshor, MD, Chair, Department of Neurosurgery, @PennMedicine
To watch the season finale, visit https://t.co/YH94NQBybM.
Thank you for tuning into season four of #BarrowNeurosurgeryBaseCamp. We’re excited to announce that season five is underway, thanks to an educational grant from Medtronic. We look forward to our new theme: the creative mind.
In the meantime, remember our 10 traits of greatness:
1. Humility
2. Ambition
3. Equanimity
4. Strategic Thinking
5. Teamwork
6. Empathy
7. Passion
8. Courage
9. Integrity
10. Tenacity
Barrow & @ASU share a mission of advancing biosciences across #AZ. That’s why we teamed up to establish the Barrow-ASU Center for Preclinical Imaging, which provides essential core technologies & professional expertise to Valley researchers. Learn more at https://t.co/QvW4hwcNGD.
This Friday, June 26, is the last day to submit a poster abstract for the 44th Annual Barrow #NeuroscienceNursing Symposium! Each abstract will be evaluated through a blinded, peer-review process. For more details and to submit a poster, please visit https://t.co/RpFLTbiY3q.
As we continue to observe #MigraineAndHeadacheAwarenessMonth (#MHAM), join us for a discussion of common myths in #migraine treatment.
As part of our "#Neurology in the News" webinar series, you'll have the opportunity to hear from Jennifer Robblee, MD, FAHS, a #neurologist in the #LewisHeadacheCenter at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute. This webinar series is free and open to the public, offering you the chance to pick the brains of world-renowned experts without sifting through research articles yourself.
📆: Friday, June 26, 2026
⏰: Noon to 1 p.m. (PDT/Arizona time)
💻: Virtual via Zoom
Registration is required. Sign up at https://t.co/ukWaBKuhRK.
Congrats to Dr. Jennifer Robblee, an associate professor in the #HeadacheMedicine Division of our Dept. of #Neurology at @BarrowNeuro, on being named a fellow of @ahsheadache. This distinction recognizes her excellence in and commitment to the headache medicine subspecialty.
Watch this #SevenSeries video showing this C4-7 laminectomy, transpedicular approach, resection of eccentric extra-/intramedullary spinal cord arteriovenous malformation (Type 5), on our website @BarrowNeuro by clicking on this link… https://t.co/J7JSfScET4.
Superpower comes from being a specialist at a referral center w/ a stream of complex cases. Exposure to rare pathologies leads to new understanding + better treatments. This challenging spinal AVM becomes recognizable in our proposed classification as an eccentric extra-/intramedullary lesion that displaces cord and as operable…
#FBF: In April, members of the Barrow Global team attended the Second Annual @wfns_neurosurg International #GlobalNeurosurgery Conference in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This year's meeting was held in collaboration with the inaugural @ISGNS_ Conference and marked one year since the @BostonDec2025—a formal pledge to strengthen research, expand access, and advance education in neurosurgery.
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan (pictured in the middle of the seated row) addressed conference attendees, affirming the country's commitment to bolstering #neurosurgery access and services. Dr. Kerry Vaughan, the Africa site director for #BarrowGlobalNeurosurgery, presented a video message from @WHOAFRO Regional Director @ProfJanabi and Barrow Global Co-Director Dr. Dilan Ellegala. Dr. Vaughan also gave talks on workforce migration factors and leadership strategies.
Barrow neurosurgery resident Dr. Cyrus Elahi and Barrow spine research fellow Dr. Francisco Rivera provided one-year updates on #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute's commitments made at the Boston Declaration, alongside @Kcmc1971 neurosurgery resident Dr. Dyllan Omwenga.
@grosseaumd, Barrow Global adjunct faculty and co-organizer of the conference, acknowledged her volunteer assistant and incoming Barrow neurosurgery resident Dr. Nikki Perez for her contributions.
Learn more about Barrow Global at https://t.co/FRG8AE4H2S.
The Alumni Keynote speaker at graduation was Mark Hadley, one of the originals & 1st residents trained by Drs. Spetzler & Sonntag. As co-author of classic papers on cardiac standstill, cavernous malformations, atlantoaxial fusion, & transoral approaches, he helped put @BarrowNeuro on the map. Legend…
Just six months into her dream job as a veterinarian, Dr. Nisha Parasher found herself on a medical leave that would last more than two years due to daily #migraine attacks.
But when she arrived at the #LewisHeadacheCenter at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute in #Phoenix, #Arizona, she finally felt heard and finally received answers. And thanks to her multidisciplinary team of clinicians at Barrow, Nisha has returned to work with a new, resilient perspective.
Read her story at https://t.co/Sx2EMlb2r3.
#MigraineAndHeadacheAwarenessMonth #MHAM
Watch this #SevenSeries video showing this temporal-parietal craniotomy, transopercular approach, and resection of temporal sylvian AVM (Spetzler-Martin Grade 2/Lawton-Young Grade 4), on our website @BarrowNeuro by clicking on this link… https://t.co/J7JSfScET4.
Sylvian fissure is a special place for AVMs b/c of MCA trunks, veins, depth, important surrounding cortex. Depending on which surface the AVM is based (frontal, temporal, insular, or cisternal), nidus-artery relationships change. Feeding arteries need to be “skeletonized,” or trimmed of supplying branches while preserving trunks that pass thru….
The Barrow Neuroimaging Innovation Center is seeking healthy volunteers for MRI research. To be considered, please take this short survey about your demographics, medical history, & interests: https://t.co/V5t5SVTMWi. More info: (602) 406-6253 or [email protected]
Congratulations to Irtiza Chaudhry, MD, on completing his clinical observership with #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute!
Dr. Chaudhry is a neurosurgery resident at Chris Hani Baragwanath in Johannesburg, South Africa. He received funding from the Franke #GlobalNeuroscience Education Center to travel to Barrow in #Phoenix, #Arizona, and spend six weeks learning from our neurologists and neurosurgeons. He primarily observed neurocritical care, vascular neurology and neurosurgery, and functional neurosurgery.
Dr. Chaudhry first learned about the Franke International Visiting Scholars and #ClinicalObservership Program through the #BarrowGlobal Neurology team, whom he met during one of their visits to @HaniAcademic—the primary teaching hospital of @WitsUniversity, with whom Barrow Global has a formal partnership.
Dr. Chaudhry chose to pursue a career in medicine because he felt called to dedicate his life to serving others. He sees his profession not as a job but as a purpose, and he described it as an honor and privilege to learn from the world-renowned experts at Barrow.
"The care here is second to none, and the skills and technical ability in this Institute are unmatched," he said. "Thank you so much for this opportunity. I hope to implement and uplift services to my patients back home."
Learn more about observerships at Barrow by https://visiting https://t.co/IRUkFirW1n.
June is National #ScoliosisAwarenessMonth.
#Scoliosis is an abnormal sideways curvature of the spine. The most common type is idiopathic, meaning the exact cause is unknown—although genetics are thought to play a role. This form often develops during the first adolescent growth spurt.
Alexandra Wikiera was in high school when she learned she had severe scoliosis and decided to have surgery to prevent progression.
Kumar Kakarla, MD, a #neurosurgeon at #BarrowNeurologicalInstitute in #Phoenix, #Arizona, who specializes in complex #spinesurgery for scoliosis and other spinal deformities, performed a #spinalfusion on eight levels of Alexandra’s thoracic spine during the summer of 2022.
"I would not change what I did for anything," said Alexandra, who returned to her active lifestyle soon after surgery and moved to Poland to pursue dental school. "The surgery has not only benefited me now but also myself for the future.”
Read the full story at https://t.co/TyIITyqGeo.