Prof. Itamar Raz, MD, received his medical degree from the Hadassah Hebrew University Medical School in Jerusalem in 1980. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, is a full professor of Internal Medicine and was the Head of the Diabetes Unit at Hadassah University Hospital 2000-2015. Prof. Raz is currently serving as head of the Israeli National Council of Diabetes and is the initiator and leader of the National Diabetes Prevention and Care Plan in Israel. In addition, Prof. Raz is President of D-Cure, a non-profit organization that promotes and funds scientific research in Israel for finding a cure and better treatments for diabetes. In the past he served as president of the Israel Diabetes Association from 1992-2004.

 

At Hadassah, Prof. Raz's basic research activities have focused on beta cell survival and function in animal models developed in his lab (Psammomys and Cohen rats). He has been active in researching the prevention of type 1 diabetes, being an international principle investigator of novel therapeutics. In addition he is currently leading several large international CV outcome diabetes (type 2) studies, in collaboration with the prestigious Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) Group from Harvard. The recently completed saxagliptin outcome study (SAVOR-TIMI 53) included approx. 16,500 patients, 800 centers/sites, in 30 various countries around the world and another currently ongoing study is being conducted on more than 17,000 patients worldwide - a multicenter trial to evaluate the effect of Dapagliflozin on the Incidence of Cardiovascular Events (DECLARE-TIMI 58). In addition he is involved with several renal outcome studies in patients with and without diabetes of new novel drugs.

 

Prof. Raz holds various editorial board positions in 8 diabetes related international journals. In addition he is an active reviewer for several journals. He has over 320 publications in peer-reviewed journals and is co-editor of 4 biennial publications of a Diabetes Care Supplement summarizing proceedings of the European Controversies to Consensus in Obesity, Diabetes and Hypertension (CODHy) meetings which he has organized over the past 10 years. Prof. Raz has chaired and been a featured speaker at multiple lectures and presentations both nationally and internationally.