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Virginia M. Percy & William Algernon Percy Chair in Orthopaedic Surgery

School of Medicine

Established in 1992 by the estate of Virginia M. Percy in memory of her husband

In announcing plans for this chair in the 1970s, VIRGINIA M. PERCY voiced her hope that the physicians who held the professorship through the years “will help to shape that future through research and the development of ever new and better techniques and instruments for all orthopaedic conditions, but especially those involving arthritis.” A longtime patient of Hopkins physician Lee Riley Jr, she suffered with arthritis. Mrs. Percy and her mother-in-law, Mary Ellen Percy, were honored at Hopkins in 1979 in appreciation of her plan to create this chair. WILLIAM ALGERNON PERCY, her husband, dedicated his life to running The Woodlands, located in Dorchester County, Maryland. The farm had been in his family since the early 1800s. Mr. Percy died in 1969.

Held by Adam S. Levin

ADAM S. LEVIN, M.D. joined the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery in 2014 and is an associate professor in orthopaedic surgery and an associate professor of oncology. Dr. Levin is the vice chair for clinical operations for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, after previously serving as vice chair for faculty development.

He earned a bachelor of science degree in biological sciences from Cornell University, graduating with high honors distinction in research within the area of animal physiology and anatomy. Dr. Levin earned a medical doctorate from the New York Medical College before completing his internship and residency in orthopaedic surgery at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center. He continued his training with a two-year fellowship in musculoskeletal oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. His fellowship experience included one year as the major family fellow, investigating novel nanoparticles as a potential mechanism to target bone metastases through alteration of the local inflammatory cell populations.

Dr. Levin is recognized as an international leader in orthopaedic clinical care, surgical treatment, and education, particularly in the field of musculoskeletal oncology.  He has a strong interest in the management of skeletal metastases, as well as the management of primary bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Dr. Levin helps lead the multidisciplinary sarcoma team at Johns Hopkins University, which is among the busiest and most highly respected in the country for this rare group of diseases. In addition, he has cultivated a strong program in the management of skeletal metastases from carcinoma and multiple myeloma, in which he has utilized his multidisciplinary approach to improve the coordination and quality of care for these patients.

His primary area of research predominantly focuses on functional outcomes in the management of osseous metastases, as well as bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Dr. Levin has active research regarding selective in vivo targeting and identification of musculoskeletal neoplasms to improve operative margin detection, as well as the use of topology optimization for improving orthopaedic implant design. He is a founding member of the steering committee for the Musculoskeletal Tumor Registry, where he leads the publications sub-committee. This ambitious project is the most expansive national collaboration regarding sarcoma and bone metastasis outcomes ever attempted. He has established Johns Hopkins Hospital as one of six pilot sites for the registry. As a clinical and research expert in rare tumors, Dr. Levin is frequently requested as a grant reviewer both in the United States and overseas for funding mechanisms related to sarcomas and similar orphan malignancies.

Dr. Levin is a fellow of the American of Orthopaedic Surgery (AAOS), a fellow of the American Orthopaedic Association (AOA), a member of the Council of Orthopaedic Residency Directors (CORD), a member of the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS), and a member of the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS). He is a regularly invited national speaker for both clinical and practice management topics. In addition, he holds numerous committee and leadership positions across these organizations, as well as at Johns Hopkins, and has been invited to participate in multiple leadership development programs.