Benjamin A. Alman, MD, FRCSC

Dr. Alman is a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, whose clinical practice focuses on the care of children with syndromes, with spinal deformity, with neuromuscular disorders, and with tumors involving the bones, joints and soft tissues. He is the sole orthopaedic consultant at the Bloorview MacMillian Centre and at the Multidisciplinary Musculoskeletal Tumour clinic at the Hospital for Sick Children, both the largest clinics of their kind in Canada.

Dr. Alman is a professor of surgery, a member of two graduate school faculties, and a member of two graduate collaborative programs at the University of Toronto. He is a scientist in the Research Institute of The Hospital for Sick Children with an appointment in the program in developmental biology, where he runs an active basic science research program, studying the role of developmental signaling pathways in musculoskeletal tumours. This basic science work has identified novel treatments for these tumours. He is the principal investigator on several national research grants, and received a Canadian Research Chair. He has over 60 peer reviewed publications in Journals such as the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nature Genetics, and Lancet, and has given over 100 presentations at international meetings or at invited lectures at various venues throughout the world.

He received numerous awards for his research work, including the Premier's Research Excellence Award (for outstanding basic science work in Ontario), the Huene Award (for outstanding contributions to Pediatric Orthopaedics in North America), the OREF Research Award (for outstanding orthopaedic investigation, given jointly by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Orthopaedic Research Society and the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation), and the Royal College Medal in Surgery of Canada (for the best research publication by a member).

In addition to his research and clinical activities, Dr. Alman serves on the Research Advisory Board and the Clinical Outcomes Advisory Board of the Shriner's Hospitals of North America, The Research Committee of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, The Board of Directors and Chair of the Research Committee of the Bloorview Foundation, and as the Chair of the Research Council of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America.