Dr. Agnes Jani-Acsadi passed away on May 9, 2018 from complications of colon cancer treatment. She was associate professor and vice chair of neurology at UConn Health, and served on the UConn faculty in a variety of roles since her arrival from Wayne State University in 2010. She established and directed the UConn Neuromuscular Fellowship program, was director of clinical neurophysiology, and served as chief of the neurology service at both UConn John Dempsey Hospital and Hartford Hospital, and interim chair of neurology at UConn Health. She was a member of the American Academy of Neurology, the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine, and a fellow of the American Neurological Association.
She was born in Hungary and attended medical school there before immigrating to the U.S. as a postdoctoral scientist in 1989. Working at the University of Wisconsin, she cloned the gene for Duchenne muscular dystrophy into viral expression and adenovirus vectors, enabling studies that greatly advanced our understanding of this disease. She also made major contributions to our knowledge of ALS, Charcot-Marie-Tooth inherited neuropathy, and myasthenia gravis. She completed residency training in neurology at Wayne State University, serving as chief resident, followed by a neuromuscular fellowship there, and joined the WSU faculty in 2004. She served as co-director of the Muscular Dystrophy Association Clinic and the Hiller ALS Clinic and Research Center, and associate director of the WSU Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship before moving to UConn with her husband, Dr. Gyula Acsadi in 2010.
“Dr. Jani-Acsadi was a dedicated clinician and teacher, returning to see patients and perform EMGs between rounds of chemotherapy,” said Dr. John Greenfield, chair of Neurology. “Her warmth and sincerity infused everything she did, making her a favorite of patients and clinical colleagues alike.”
She was a superb clinician and mentor, taking pride in the high level of training she provided to neurology residents and neuromuscular fellows according to Dr. Bruce Liang, dean, UConn School of Medicine. “During her tenure as interim chair of neurology, she recruited a number of very talented young faculty members, many of whom were former residents of our program. Several have said that when Agnes asked them to return to UConn, they could not refuse due to the strong bonds created during their training,” said Dr. Liang.
She was known to her friends as a wonderful cook, specializing in her native Hungarian cuisine. “She was a wonderful person who cared deeply about her patients, the neurology faculty, employees and UConn Health as a whole,” Dr. Andy Agwunobi, EVP for Health Affairs and CEO of UConn Health reflected. “I worked with her personally and feel profound sadness at her untimely death. She was a kind person and a great physician. I am sure I speak for many in offering my sincere condolences to her family and my thanks to them for the time we had with her.”
Dr. Agnes Jani-Acsadi is survived by her husband, Dr. Gyula Acsadi, who directs the Pediatric Neurology Division at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, their three accomplished children Daniel (wife Leticia), Marta (husband Doug) and Nora as well as two grandchildren Oliver and Julian, and one on the way.