Francesc Graus MD, PhD

Francesc Graus obtained his MD degree in 1976 and his Ph.D. in 1982 at the Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain). He completed his residency in neurology at the Hospital Bellvitge of Hospitalet, Barcelona, and a fellowship in Neuro-Oncology at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, (NY, USA). Since 1986, he is a staff member of the Service of Neurology of the Hospital Clinic, Barcelona. Professor Graus is Professor of Medicine at the University of Barcelona and Head Physician at the Hospital Clinic, where he coordinates the neuroimmunology program of the Institut Investigacion Biomèdica August Pi I Sunyer (IDIBAPS), that is the research center affiliated to the Hospital Clinic.

Professor Graus’ research interest has focused on the clinical and immunological characterization of the paraneoplastic neurological syndromes. He led the panel of experts that defined the first diagnostic criteria for these syndromes. His research has been key to confirm the immune hypothesis (ie, that the underlying tumor triggers an autoimmune attack to the nervous system causing the neurological dysfunction). Professor Graus’ pioneering studies led to the identification of antibodies (Hu, Tr, Sox1) that are now widely used for the diagnosis of these syndromes. Currently, his research focuses on autoimmune encephalitis and other CNS disorders associated with antibodies against neuronal surface antigens. The research in this area led to the characterization of the anti-IgLON5 disease, an intriguing CNS disorder at the crossroads of autoimmunity and neurodegeneration.