Physician spotlight: Ronald E. Warnick, MD
Ronald E. Warnick, MD, is a neurosurgeon and brain tumor specialist with Mayfield Brain & Spine and Co-Director of the Gamma Knife Center at The Jewish Hospital – Mercy Health. He served as Mayfield’s Chairman from 2004 through 2012.
Over a period of 34 years, Dr. Warnick has performed
more than 5,000 radiosurgery procedures.
Dr. Warnick completed the 5,000th radiosurgery of his distinguished career in April 2025. He is one of the world's foremost experts in the use of radiosurgery, where precise beams of radiation are used to treat brain tumors, trigeminal neuralgia and vascular disorders. He has worked with hundreds of collaborators: radiosurgery centers and researchers around the world, specialists at hospitals around Greater Cincinnati and his colleagues at Mayfield.
"This is a collective accomplishment," Dr. Warnick said. "I am proud of Mayfield's leadership role in developing the first stereotactic radiosurgery program in Cincinnati and then continually expanding the clinical indications for this minimally invasive procedure through collaborative research."
Dr. Warnick's clinical research into new treatments for malignant glioma and metastatic brain tumors has been widely published in peer-reviewed journals. In the mid-1990s, under his direction, the University of Cincinnati became one of the first four centers in the country to use gene therapy for the treatment of recurring brain tumors. Dr. Warnick was later honored for that pioneering work with the Mahaley Clinical Research Award and the National Brain Tumor Foundation Award for Excellence in Clinical Research.
Radiosurgery has clinical indications beyond brain tumors. In 2024, Dr. Warnick and his collaborators in the International Radiosurgery Research Foundation (IRRF) completed the largest-ever retrospective study of trigeminal neuralgia patients, outlining a path for physicians to customize treatment, minimize long-term pain and reduce medication use. The study was published in the prestigious Journal of Neurosurgery and featured on the cover.
Also under Dr. Warnick's leadership, Mayfield joined 20 other leading sites across the United States in a national registry for stereotactic radiosurgery treatment of brain tumors. The registry is a project of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the NeuroPoint Alliance (NPA). Over 5,000 patients have been entered into the registry with the goal of improving the consistency and quality of stereotactic radiosurgery throughout the United States.
Dr. Warnick earned his MD with honors from the University of Rochester, in Rochester, New York, and was initiated into the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society. He completed his internship in general surgery and his neurosurgery residency at New York University and a neuro-oncology fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco.
Dr. Warnick started at Mayfield in 1991 and has served in several important roles, including chairman of the Board of Directors from 2007-2014. He was co-director of Precision Radiotherapy from 2002-2017 and is currently co-director of the Gamma Knife Center at The Jewish Hospital. Dr. Warnick has worked closely with his colleagues from radiation oncology to develop top-tier radiosurgery programs at The Jewish Hospital – Mercy Health, TriHealth, and The Christ Hospital. Those robust programs are an integral part of The Brain Tumor Institute at Mayfield, launched in 2024. The Institute aims to make Greater Cincinnati a comprehensive destination for brain tumor care, increasing access to clinical trials and enhancing care for patients at different hospitals.
He served as Chairman of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/Congress of Neurological Surgeons Section on Tumors from 2005 to 2007 and remains on the Advisory Board. He has given 170 national or international presentations, has authored or co-authored 120 journal articles and book chapters, and has trained 57 neurosurgical residents and neuro-oncology fellows. He has been listed among the best doctors in America and in the Greater Cincinnati region every year since 2004.
Dr. Warnick was part of the Leadership Cincinnati team that created Project Heart ReStart, which has provided 210 automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) to non-profit organizations in Greater Cincinnati and has trained more than 4,200 people in CPR. In 2008 he established a community outreach program at Mayfield Brain & Spine. Dr. Warnick is an avid supporter of CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocate) for Clermont Kids.
Dr. Warnick with his wife, Ana, at Mayfield's 75th Anniversary Gala
Dr. Warnick with his daughter, Katarina
Dr. Ron Warnick reaches milestone of 5,000 radiosurgeries
Mayfield Neurosurgeon Named to Novalis Circle Expert Group
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