Welcome to the MGH FTD Unit: People

Brad Dickerson, M.D. (Principal Investigator): brad.dickerson@mgh.harvard.edu

As a neuroscientist, Dr. Dickerson has made contributions to the investigation of neuroimaging and cognitive-behavioral abnormalities in a variety of neurodegenerative diseases. His contributions have provided new fundamental insights into brain-behavior relationships in these diseases, some of which have been translated into key advances in diagnosis, monitoring, and prognostication. In addition, he has led research that has provided innovative insights into normal age-related changes in brain structure, function, and memory; the phenomenon of SuperAging (the anatomical and functional neural basis of older adults with superior (“youthful”) memory; and the functional neuroanatomy of normal human memory, affective function, and social behavior. Dr. Dickerson has published more than 190 peer-reviewed publications in 3 major areas: cognitive, affective, and imaging neuroscience in the healthy adult across the lifespan; technology devel opment in neuroimaging; and the translation of innovative behavioral phenotyping and advanced imaging technology to patients with neurodegenerative disease. The impact of his original scientific investigations has been substantial, with 23,950 citations, an h index of 70, and an i10 index of 150. Because of his internationally regarded research expertise, he has been invited to write multiple reviews and editorials, participate in or lead multiple national and international research committees, and he recei ved the prestigious Norman Geschwind Award in Behavioral Neurology from the American Academy of Neurology. He has served on many ad hoc grant review committees, including more than 15 NIH study sections. Dr. Dickerson has had sustained NIH funding for 17 years, and he is currently PI or MPI on 8 NIH grants (U01, R01s, R56,R21), Project or Core leader on 2 P (P30, P01) and 1 U01 grants, and site PI on 4 NIH and 2 foundation grants. Because of the collaborative nature of much of Dr. Dickerson’s research, many of these grant leadership roles are with other PIs.

Dr. Dickerson is the immediate past Co-Editor-in-Chief of Neuroimage:Clinical, Section Editor for Cortex and Alzheimer’s Diagnosis and Disease Management , and is on the editorial boards of 4 other journals. Because of his research experti se, Dr. Dickerson is on the Executive Committee of the Alzheimer’s Association Neuroimaging Professional Interest Area, most recently as Chair, and he chaired the 2019 Alzheimer’s Imaging Consortium research meeting, which was attended by more than 700 res earchers from around the world. He is a member of the Scientific Program Committee for the 2020 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, and for the 2020 International Conference on Frontotemporal Dementia, two key international research conferenc es in his field.

In addition to his accomplishments in Investigation, Dr. Dickerson has an international reputation for Clinical Expertise, having contributed substantially to the diagnostic criteria for Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) and Posterior Cortical Atrophy. Currently, Dr. Dickerson is co - chairing the Alzheimer’s Association - sponsored Clinical Practice Guideline workgroup that is developing best practices guidelines for the diagnostic evaluation of patients with cognitive impairment, which is expecte d to be the major guideline for primary and specialty care in the United States. In addition, he led the development of two novel scales to measure the types and severity of symptoms in patients with FTD and Primary Progressive Aphasia, both of which have been or are being incorporated into multi - center natural history studies and clinical trials. Because of his clinical expertise, he has been invited to give lectures (including a keynote lecture at the 2019 World Congress of Neurology) and to contribute ch apters and editorials (including a 2019 editorial in JAMA ) by an international array of colleagues, and is on multiple corporate scientific advisory boards. He co - edited a widely regarded 2014 textbook Dementia: Comprehensive Principles and Practice (Oxfor d University Press), which is now undergoing revision and expansion for its second edition. He also edited a 2016 textbook Hodges’ Frontotemporal Dementia (Cambridge University Press), which has now become the definitive reference on these diseases. He is Chair of the Alzheimer’s Association MA/NH Medical and Scientific Advisory Board, and Chair - elect of the national Association for Frontotemporal Dementia’s Medical Advisory Council.

In addition to Investigation and Clinical Expertise, Dr. Dickerson has also contributed substantially to teaching. He has provided major mentorship roles to more than 57 mentees at a variety of levels, including serving on the dissertation committees of 10 graduate students, being primary mentor for 28 post - doctoral clinical or research fellows, and mentoring 7 individuals in the transition from post - doctoral trainees to junior faculty, including being primary mentor on four funded K career development awar ds. For the past 7 years, he has co - directed the 3.5 day annual Harvard Medical School CME Dementia Course, in its 2 4th year with a faculty of 2 5 and approximately 250 - 300 clinician attendees. He lectures in 4 HMS/HST courses that run annually or bienniall y, and lectures in 3 annual Harvard CME courses. He also directed the annual American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Primer of Behavioral Neurology course for 5 years in a row, and more recently directed and continues to direct the annual AAN Neurology of Soci al Behavior course.

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Click below for two more publicity headshots:
Dickerson image one
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Bio for introductions:
Brad Dickerson, MD, is a behavioral neurologist and neuroscientist dedicated to the sophisticated, compassionate, and multidisciplinary care of patients with neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease and Frontotemporal Dementia. He is the Tommy Rickles Endowed Chair in Progressive Aphasia Research, Director of the MGH Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Leader of the Neuroimaging Core of the MGH Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and is Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Dickerson runs a multidisciplinary team of 30 clinicians and scientists using advanced brain imaging and behavioral methods to study how memory, language, emotion, and social behaviors change in normal aging and in patients with neurodegenerative disease. His team also studies new approaches to caregiving. He has published more than 195 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals and has edited two books on dementia. He is active in mentoring trainees and in teaching, is Chair of the Medical and Scientific Advisory Council of the Massachusetts Alzheimer's Association and is Chair-Elect of the national Medical Advisory Council of the Association for FTD. He has won a number of awards, including the American Academy of Neurology’s Norman Geschwind Award in Behavioral Neurology.