Ron Kikinis, professor of radiology at Harvard Medical School in Boston, is the recipient of this year’s International Excellence Award of KIT and the Fellowship of SCHROFF Foundation. With the awards, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) honors an internationally recognized expert in medical image processing, image-guided therapy, and biomedical informatics. The awards include a research stay of up to six months at KIT.

Computerized imaging during operations and image-guided diagnostics and therapy: What is now everyday clinical practice was visionary and pioneering in the 1980s. As a postdoc, Ron Kikinis was among the first researchers to systematically introduce the methods of computer vision and image analysis into clinical practice, thus establishing a new scientific field. His work paved the way for current developments in AI-assisted diagnostics, personalized medicine, and digitalized healthcare. Kikinis is a professor of radiology at Harvard Medical School and founding director of the Surgical Planning Laboratory at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston; his current work concerns global health and the digital transformation in medicine.

In recognition of his work, Kikinis is receiving the International Excellence Award of KIT and the Fellowship of SCHROFF Foundation, and an invitation for a stay of up to six months at KIT. “With his research, Professor Kikinis addresses central challenges of modern medicine,” said Professor Jan S. Hesthaven, President of KIT. “With his interdisciplinary influence on radiology, computer science, engineering, and medical technology, he makes important contributions to ongoing progress in modern medical technologies, reflecting the kind of approach to science that KIT wishes to recognize.”

“This is the third time we have conferred the International Excellence Award, which enhances KIT’s visibility as an attractive and collaborative research institution,” said Professor Thomas Hirth, Vice President Transfer and International Affairs at KIT. “With his interdisciplinary approach and his long-term commitment to international cooperation, Professor Ron Kikinis personifies the values this award stands for.”

Fair Access to Medical Technology

Kikinis is also the founder and architect of 3D Slicer, an open access software platform used by thousands of researchers and physicians worldwide for clinical image analysis and visualization. “With his dedication to open science, he has made cutting-edge medical imaging technology widely accessible and has democratized innovation and training in biomedical research,” said Professor Maria Francesca Spadea, head of KIT’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering. His research stay at KIT will strengthen collaboration in healthcare technologies, information science, and biomedical systems engineering.


International Excellence Grants at KIT

In addition to the research stay, the prize includes up to 12 months of funding for accompanying junior researchers from Kikinis’s group and up to EUR 50,000 for equipment for a research project to be conducted at the KIT host institute. The award is part of the International Excellence Grants (IEG) initiative in KIT’s successful University of Excellence concept and is aimed at promoting international collaboration in top-level research and attracting international researchers to KIT.