Neuroradiology Fellowship

Fellowship Program Director:  Eaton Lin, M.D.

ACGME: 4233521052 - NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (CORNELL CAMPUS)

NRMP Program Code: 1492423F0

The Neuroradiology division offers a one-year ACGME-accredited diagnostic Neuroradiology fellowship at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine (NYPH/WCM) with an option for a secondary-year of subspecialty training.  NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital is the top hospital in New York and one of the top hospitals nationally as ranked by US News and World Report. Furthermore, the hospital is ranked #4 nationally for Neurology and Neurosurgery research and clinical care.  Weill Cornell Medicine is a top 10 medical school nationally and home to one of the premier radiology training programs in the country.

At NYPH/WCM, fellows perform image-guided neurological invasive procedures, interpret MR and CT examinations, and are responsible for advanced neuroimaging studies which include MR and CT angiography, MR and CT perfusion, PET/MR, MR neurography, functional MRI and tractography, and MR spectroscopy.  The Neuroradiology Division at Weill Cornell Medicine performs approximately 60,000 neuro MR and neuro CT studies annually ensuring more than ample studies for fellowship training. 

With over 20 full-time neuroradiology faculty members, subspecialty imaging is emphasized including pediatric, head and neck, spine, and vascular neuroradiology. Fellows train with national and international leaders in the field of neuroradiology. Members of our esteemed faculty are regularly invited speakers at national meetings and programs such as the AIRP rad-path correlation course, serve as editorial board members for prominent academic neuroimaging journals such as American Journal of Neuroradiology, and serve on executive committees of national organizations such as the American Society of Neuroradiology, American Society of Functional Neuroradiology, and American Society of Head and Neck Radiology.

A significant number of pediatric neuroradiology cases are done at NYPH/WCM; the presence of Komansky Children’s Hospital, an active newborn nursery, neonatal ICU, and pediatric ICU ensures that the entire gamut of ischemic, inflammatory, traumatic, and neoplastic disorders are encountered. NYPH/WCM has full-time pediatric neurologists and three full-time pediatric neurosurgeons. Outpatient pediatric neuro MRI sedation cases are done bi-weekly and inpatient pediatric neuro MRI studies are performed daily.  Additionally, fetal MRI examinations are performed on a weekly basis.

Under the supervision of attending neuroradiologists, fellows also perform a wide range of image-guided procedures including lumbar puncture and myelography, image-guided biopsies, MR-guided focused ultrasound, and advanced pain procedures.  There is a dedicated spine intervention rotation where fellows gain experience performing a variety of CT-, MR-, and ultrasound-guided neurointerventions.

Image-Guided Procedural Training:

Fellows rotate at the new David H. Koch (DHK) center for image-guided procedural training including diagnosis and treatment of CSF leaks, cervical/thoracic/lumbar nerve and facet blocks, synovial cyst ruptures, trigeminal nerve blocks, head and neck biopsies, spine biopsies, epidural blood patches, and radiofrequency ablations. At the DHK center, radiology has 3 interventional fluoroscopy suites, 2 interventional CT suites, and an interventional fluoro-PET-MRI hybrid suite.

Conferences, Education, and Research:

Weekly, multi-disciplinary conferences are emphasized with Neuroradiology collaborating with Neurology, Neurological Surgery, Endocrinology, Otolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, Physiatry, and Pain-Anesthesia departments. Fellows attend and present at numerous interdisciplinary conferences including Brain Tumor Board/Neuropathology, Neurovascular, Head and Neck Tumor Board, Pediatrics, Pediatric Neurosurgery, Stereotactic Radiosurgery, Epilepsy, Spine, and Ophthalmology conferences.  There is a comprehensive fellowship educational curriculum including at least twice weekly didactic lectures. There are also dedicated pediatric neuroradiology and head and neck radiology lecture curriculums designed for the fellows.

The neuroradiology attending/faculty members at NYPH are involved in numerous research projects that cover a wide range of topics and techniques, such as CT and MR perfusion, MR neurography, molecular imaging, fMRI, MR guided focused ultrasound, diffusion tensor imaging in TBI, neoplastic disease, cerebrovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases. Our department ranks within the top 5 nationally in NIH funding, so there are always a plethora of research opportunities available. Fellows are strongly encouraged to become involved in a project of their own interest as the primary investigator.

There is an option for a second year of fellowship training and clinical instructor experience for trainees seeking additional research and subspecialty experience.

There is a two-week elective period during the one-year neuroradiology fellowship. Electives in neurological surgery, neuropathology and otolaryngology can be taken to gain clinical experience. The remainder of the clinical experience is gained from attending interdisciplinary conferences, during daily work rounds, and discussion of cases with residents and attendings from referring services.

On Call Responsibilities:

The 2024-2025 graduate staff salary for trainees at the PGY-6 level is $123,000. Additional compensation is paid for all weekend calls.

Neuroradiology fellows take call every sixth week and have the following Monday off as a post-call recuperation period. While on call, fellows review imaging studies and perform advanced image analysis exams (e.g., CTA and CTP). Neuroradiology fellows are responsible for emergent procedures while on call, with the exception of emergent cerebral angiograms which are performed by the interventional neuroradiology group (INR).