Two Global Down Syndrome Foundation Experts Receive Prestigious National Awards for Scientific Breakthrough and Contributions in the Medical Field

Dallas, TX – Dr. Joaquín Espinosa, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome on the Anschutz Medical Campus (Crnic Institute), was awarded the National Down Syndrome Congress 2018 Pueschel-Tjossem Award for his scientific breakthrough recasting Down syndrome as an immune system disorder. Dr. Dennis McGuire, LCSW, Ph.D., Senior Consultant for Adult Medical Initiatives at the Global Down Syndrome Foundation (Global), received the 2018 Down Syndrome Medical Interest Group William I. Cohen MD, Distinguished Service Award for his lifetime work in behavioral and mental health for adolescents and adults with Down syndrome. He received the award along with his esteemed and accomplished colleague, Dr. Brian Chicoine, M.D.. Both awards were presented at the National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) Annual Convention.

Kishore Vellody, M.D., Frank Stephens, Joaquín Espinosa, Ph.D.,
DeOndra Dixon, and David Tolleson

Dr. Espinosa is a nationally and internationally renowned cancer scientist. As the Executive Director of the Crnic Institute, a Global Affiliate, he oversees the Crnic Institute Human Trisome Project™, studying how Down syndrome (trisomy 21) connects to cancer, Alzheimer’s, immune system disorders, and multiple other co-morbidities. He is also a Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and founding Director of the Functional Genomics Facility at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus School of Medicine, and co-Leader of the Molecular Oncology program at the University of Colorado Cancer Center. The NDSC Pueschel-Tjossem Award recognizes research that has contributed to greater knowledge and understanding of Down syndrome and has improved the lives of people with Down syndrome and their families.

Dr. Dennis McGuire and Dr. Brian Chicoine

Dr. McGuire has more than 30 years of experience in the fields of mental health and developmental disabilities. He currently serves as Global’s Senior Consultant specializing in adult initiatives, including establishing a medical care center for adults with Down syndrome in Denver. Along with his colleague Dr. Chicoine, Dr. McGuire co-founded the Adult Down Syndrome Center of Lutheran General Hospital in Chicago, the largest, most prestigious clinic for adults with Down syndrome in the United States, where he served as Director of Psychological Services. Drs. McGuire and Chicoine co-authored two milestone books, Mental Wellness in Adults with Down Syndrome and The Guide to Good Health for Teens and Adults with Down Syndrome. Both doctors are serving as authors for Global’s Medical Care Guidelines for Adults with Down Syndrome – an important community service project.

The Down Syndrome Medical Interest Group-USA (DSMIG-USA) established the William I. Cohen, MD Distinguished Service Award in 2016 to honor a member for major contributions to DSMIG-USA’s mission of promoting the health and wellness of individuals with Down syndrome.