New York State Research Foundation Nyspi

Dr. McCormick is the Gallen Professor of Neurological Surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is also the Director of The Och Spine Hospital at The Neurological Institute of New York and an attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. His clinical and research interests focus exclusively on the evaluation, surgical management, and outcomes assessment of patients with disorders of the spine and spinal cord. He is a world-renowned spinal neurosurgeon and recognized expert in the surgical management of spinal disorders including spinal cord tumors, vascular malformations, herniated cervical and lumbar discs, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, microsurgery, arthroplasty, and spinal stabilization and fusion for traumatic and degenerative spinal instability and deformity.Dr. McCormick graduated from Columbia University and received his medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He performed research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and trained in Neurological Surgery at the prestigious Neurological Institute of New York. He performed a one-year complex spine surgery fellowship at Medical College of Wisconsin and returned to the Neurological Institute of New York to join the neurosurgical staff as the first neurosurgeon to dedicate his practice entirely to the treatment of patients with spinal disorders. In the 25 years of practice, Dr. McCormick has performed nearly 7000 spinal procedures on patients from around the world but with special emphasis on patients from tri-state area.Dr. McCormick has received numerous awards including the prestigious Columbia College 2007 John Jay award for professional achievement, the 2009 Joint Spine Section Meritorious Service award, and was an honored lecturer at national, international, and institutional events on numerous occasions. He has consistently been named as one of New York's best doctors since 2001 and for the last several years has been named as one of Castle Connolly's America's Top Doctors, America's Top Doctors for Cancer, and Top Doctors: New York Metro Area.

Dr. Diaz is an assistant professor of Neurology at CUIMC, in the division of Neuro-Oncology. She is originally from Madrid, Spain, where she graduated medical school at Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She then moved to the US to continue her medical education, completing an internal medicine internship followed by neurology residency at University of Virginia. She then pursued a 3-year Neuro-oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, after which she joined NYP/CUIMC. Her research interests include tumor markers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) as well as clinical trials.