Dr. Germano is a board certified neurosurgeon who specializes in the most advanced research in, and treatment of patients with, brain tumors. She is Professor of Neurosurgery, Neurology, and Oncological Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. She serves as Director of the Mount Sinai Comprehensive Brain Tumor Program, as well as Co-Director of the Radiosurgery Program and Vice Chair for Diversity and Inclusion of the Mount Sinai Health System Department of Neurosurgery.
In her clinical practice, Dr. Germano focuses on providing multidisciplinary care, rooted in minimally invasive procedures, for brain and spine tumor patients. Her pioneering work in the field includes first-in-human technology applications for computer-assisted, image-guided neurosurgery and a first-in-human clinical trial in New York State using gene therapy for recurrent glioblastoma.
Dr. Germano established the multi-disciplinary brain tumor program at Mount Sinai including the first neurosurgery laboratory in brain tumor basic/translational research as Principal Investigator of National Institute of Health (NIH) and national Cancer Institute (NCI) R01 grants. Her translational research on brain tumor has also been funded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), private foundations and Industry. She is recognized a national leader in brain tumor neurosurgery for her many clinical and translational contributions, including over 150 peer-reviewed scientific publications and 6 books.
She is also internationally recognized as a neurosurgery educator, having organized, directed, and/or served as an instructor for nearly 300 practical courses for neurosurgeons and trainees in the United States and abroad. She recently published the first book on "Neurosurgery and Global Health" [Springer, 2022].
Dr. Germano has received more than 50 awards recognizing her as a leader in neurosurgery. She is the current Chairperson of the the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and Congress of Neurological Surgeons Section on Tumors (2022-2024), the past chair of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies Education and Training and past chair of the AANS/CNS Section on Women in Neurosurgery, and has held more than 30 other leadership positions within neurosurgical societies, governmental agencies, and other professional organizations.