I’ve always been interested in how the brain works. And there are so many ways of looking at it – through psychology, medicine and even philosophy.

But once I chose medicine, I felt neurosurgery was the most interesting pathway to exploring what happens inside the brain. In some ways, neurosurgeons are like gatekeepers. If you want to study the brain, you often need to gain access through neurosurgery.

While my specialty, functional neurosurgery, is about improving brain function, I didn’t set out to work with people with Alzheimer’s disease.

I came to Canada from Israel to work with Dr. Andres Lozano at Toronto’s University Health Network because his work in functional neurosurgery is known around the world.

What interests me is treating patients with a wide range of neurodegenerative diseases. I want to see them improve and that’s why this project on the potential of deep brain stimulation to treat Alzheimer’s disease is exciting to me.

Up till now, we haven’t been able to come up with really effective treatments. If we find this improves memory function in people with Alzheimer’s, this could change people’s lives.

Read more about Dr. Ido Strauss and other Firefly researchers.

Dr. Ido Strauss

Firefly Foundation Spark Award Recipient