Mauricio Castillo receives his 2020 ARRS Gold Medal for Distinguished Service to Radiology.
UNC Department of Radiology congratulates Dr. Mauricio Castillo, the Matthew A. Mauro, M.D. Distinguished Professor in Radiology, former Neuroradiology Division Chief and Program Director, and a Fellow of the American College of Radiology, for his selection as the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS) 2020 Gold Medal recipient. Dr. Castillo joins Dr. Etta Pisano (2012) and Dr. Joseph K.T. Lee (2013) as the Department’s third faculty member to receive this Gold Medal. Dr. Castillo served as ARRS President (2016-2017) and as a Figley Fellow in Radiology Journalism and an AFIP Scholar.
“I am honored to have received the Gold Medal from ARRS, the oldest radiological organization in North America,” says Dr. Castillo. “This medal represents 30 years of work with the society, from my first lecture in the San Francisco meeting in 1993 to being its President in 2016 to today when I still serve in several committees.”
At UNC, Dr. Castillo began his distinguished career in 1992 as an Associate Professor. For his excellence as an educator, Castillo received the Annual Charles A. Bream Teaching Award in Radiology twice (1997, 2007). In 2015, he was appointed as UNC’s second James H. Scatliff, M.D. Distinguished Professor of Radiology.
Dr. Castillo is recognized internationally for his decades as a top scholar in clinical neuroimaging. He served as Editor in Chief of the American Journal of Neuroradiology and has authored 30 books, almost 200 electronic presentations, 170+ book chapters, 650 articles, and 400+ abstracts. He delivered over 1,200 lectures during his 53 Visiting Professorships. A native of Guatemala, Dr. Castillo is an Honorary Member of the European and Italian Societies of Neuroradiology and the Spanish, Chinese-Taiwan, Argentinian, Ecuatorian, Pernubucam, and Cearense Societies of Radiology.
Dr. Castillo’s history of ARRS leadership is mirrored by other positions he’s held in neuroradiology and radiology. He served as the American Society of Neuroradiology (ASNR)’s 2013-2014 President and is a founding member of the American Society of Pediatric Neuroradiology (ASPNR). Within the American College of Radiology (ACR), Dr. Castillo was chosen as a Fellow (FACR) in 2003 and its first-ever recipient of the Jackson Education Fellowship in 2004.
The 2020 American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS)’s Gold Medal for Distinguished Service to Radiology is Dr. Castillo’s second career-honoring Gold Medal in recent years. He received the American Society of Neuroradiology (ASNR)’s Gold Medal in 2018. The ARRS honor was to be presented to Dr. Castillo during the 120th ARRS Annual Meeting in May 2020 in Chicago, Ill. However, due to the pandemic, the conference was canceled. After a two-year delay due to the pandemic, Dr. Castillo accepted his award at the ARRS 2022 Meeting on May 1.
ARRS 2019-2020 President Dr. Ruth Carlos noted: “Mauricio represents the best of us. He embodies the ARRS spirit of education and leadership through collegiality. This award is a small measure of our esteem and appreciation of Dr. Castillo’s contributions to the ARRS and the radiology profession.”
Former UNC Radiology resident Audrey Verde, MD, Ph.D., shared her thoughts via Twitter, “So well deserved! Dr. Castillo is the reason I went into Radiology and Neuroradiology. He is a great teacher, mentor, and sponsor!!”