RSNA Honorary Membership is presented for significant achievement in the field of radiology. During RSNA 2021, honorary membership were awarded to three physicians.
Boris Brkljačić, MD, PhD
Hailed for establishing a lifesaving breast cancer screening program in his native Croatia, Boris Brkljačić, MD, PhD, is chair of radiology at University Hospital Dubrava, Zagreb, and vice dean, full professor and chair of radiology cathedra at the University of Zagreb School of Medicine (UZSM). Dr. Brkljačić also teaches at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and at the University of Iceland in Reykjavik.
Brkljačić
Among Dr. Brkljačić's research interests are Doppler ultrasound for exploring vascular flow in kidney disease, head and neck pathology, and peripheral arterial disease. He has also fine-tuned methods for breast imaging, notably introducing BI-RADS to Croatia, a country where mortality from breast cancer has been consistently dropping since the screening program was established in 2006.
Dr. Brkljačić earned his medical degree from UZSM in 1988, followed by a radiology residency in Zagreb and fellowships in the United States, including at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. He developed an interest in breast and urogenital imaging as well as vascular and interventional radiology, going on to earn a Master of Science degree and PhD from UZSM.
In addition to his critical work as head of the Radiology Advisory Board of Croatia's Ministry of Health for the National Breast Cancer Screening Programme, Dr. Brkljačić has served in numerous influential leadership positions, including vice president of the Croatian Medical Association, president of the Croatian Society of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology, and president of the Croatian Society of Radiology from 2008 to 2012. He served on the executive council and board of directors of the European Society of Radiology and is the immediate past president. He is also secretary general for the International Society of Radiology and serves on the board of the International Society for Strategic Studies in Radiology.
Dr. Brkljačić was presented the Andrija Štampar Award from the University of Zagreb in 2020, honoring his dedication to research and mentoring young professionals in the biomedical sciences. He has been named honorary fellow of the European Federation of Societies of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology and is an honorary member of 10 international radiology societies.
Seung Hyup Kim, MD, PhD
A natural leader dedicated to advancing knowledge worldwide, Seung Hyup Kim, MD, PhD, is a professor emeritus of radiology and urology at Seoul National University Hospital and founder of the public education-driven K Radiology Clinic.
Kim
A trailblazer in the field, Dr. Kim's devotion to open global collaboration is clear. He served as secretary-general of the 11th Congress of the World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (WFUMB), held in Seoul in 2006. His work was instrumental in transforming the Korean Society of Ultrasound in Medicine (KSUM), and he expanded the society's annual congress to an international one, using the tagline "KSUM Open" and adopting English as a congress language. From 2019 to earlier this year, Dr. Kim served as president of WFUMB.
Dr. Kim has written two volumes of the Radiology Illustrated series — Uroradiology and Gynecologic Imaging. He also leads a research institute dedicated to the investigation of treatment for nutcracker syndrome, a disorder in which the major arteries compress the renal vein.
Dr. Kim received his medical degree in 1979, his master's degree in 1982, and his PhD in 1988 at Seoul National University (SNU). After military service, he became a radiology instructor at SNU and was a visiting radiologist at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. At SNU, his work focused on genitourinary imaging, serving as a professor of radiology and of urology. He was named associate dean of the university in 2002, served as chair of the Department of Radiology from 2008 to 2010, and then was appointed vice president of the university hospital.
Now retired, Dr. Kim continues to serve as a consultant in kidney ultrasound and urogenital CT and MR, most notably at the Ewha Women's University Mokdong Hospital in Seoul. Dr. Kim also directs a professional imaging clinic in a nephrology hospital, and he has established the website k-radiology.com to freely share tutorials with colleagues and trainees on urogenital topics that may not be extensively taught in clinical settings.
Harriet C. Thoeny, MD
Recognized across the globe for her pioneering applications of functional MRI in genitourinary and head and neck radiology, Harriet C. Thoeny, MD, chairs the radiology departments at the Cantonal Hospitals of Fribourg in Switzerland. Dr. Thoeny is also an adjunct professor of urology at the University of Bern and a full professor of radiology at the University of Fribourg.
Thoeny
Dr. Thoeny earned her medical degree at the University of Bern and completed residencies at various Swiss hospitals. During her clinical fellowship in head and neck and genitourinary radiology at the University Hospitals of Leuven (Gasthuisberg) in Belgium, she discovered her fascination with research. For the last two decades, Dr. Thoeny has led grant-funded research projects that explored diffusion-weighted functional MR in novel applications, many of which are now standard in clinical practice. She has investigated the detection of lymph node metastases in normal-sized nodes in prostate and bladder cancers, MR imaging biomarkers for chronic kidney disease, monitoring of radiation therapy for head and neck tumors, and the evaluation of kidney function by multi-modal MR imaging in renal transplantation.
A renowned consultant and enthusiastic collaborator, Dr. Thoeny has contributed to the development of international guidelines, including serving on the European Society of Urogenital Radiology (ESUR)/American College of Radiology PI-RADS steering committee. She served as president of ESUR from 2016 to 2018, introducing the European Diploma in Urogenital Radiology.
Dr. Thoeny has served RSNA in several capacities, including as associate editor of Radiology, and a member of the International Advisory Committee, Margulis Award Committee and Genitourinary Radiology scientific subcommittee. Since 2017, she has served as vice chair and chair of the RSNA Regional Committee for Europe, providing direction on how RSNA can best meet the needs of members in the region.
Internationally recognized for her leadership in research and education, Dr. Thoeny has been named an honorary member of the Spanish Society of Abdominal Radiology and the French Society of Radiology, and an honorary fellow of the Asian Society of Abdominal Radiology.
