Internationally renowned stroke researcher Dr. Mayank Goyal receives Royal Society of Canada McLaughlin Medal

Dr. Mayank Goyal, MD, PhD, a University of Calgary neuroradiologist whose research has helped redefine how acute ischemic stroke is diagnosed and treated, has been awarded the Royal Society of Canada’s McLaughlin Medal.

Established in 1978, the medal recognizes important research of sustained excellence in medical science and is one of the Royal Society of Canada’s major awards.

For Goyal, a professor in the Cumming School of Medicine’s departments of Radiology and Clinical Neurosciences, the honour reflects a career built around one of the central challenges in stroke medicine: restoring blood flow to the brain as quickly and safely as possible.

“I think one of the key parts of this prize is related to continued contribution in a particular field of medicine,” says Goyal. 

“The Calgary Stroke Program has been able to have sustained influence on a disease condition through a combination of innovation, evidence-based medicine, hard work and, of course, working with many, many talented people … not just locally, but across the world.”

Goyal is a diagnostic and interventional neuroradiologist at Foothills Medical Centre and holds the Heart and Stroke Foundation Chair in Stroke Research.

His work sits at the intersection of radiology, neurology and emergency stroke care — an interdisciplinary approach that has become a hallmark of Calgary’s internationally recognized stroke research program.

“Dr. Goyal is an innovator and creator at the most extreme front of the adoption curve,” says Dr. Andrew Demchuk, MD, a stroke neurologist, director of the Calgary Stroke Program, and professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences and Radiology.

“He thinks and creates innovation every chance he can and then challenges the rest of us to catch up or be left behind.”

Among Goyal’s most influential contributions has been his leadership in major randomized clinical trials, including ESCAPE and SWIFT PRIME, which helped establish endovascular thrombectomy as a standard treatment for patients with severe ischemic stroke caused by a blocked large blood vessel. The treatment uses a catheter-based procedure to remove the clot and restore blood flow to the brain.

The ESCAPE trial, which was published in 2015 in the New England Journal of Medicine, substantially improved outcomes compared with standard medical care alone, says Goyal.

Among those who received endovascular treatment (EVT), 53 per cent were functionally independent 90 days after their stroke, compared with 29 per cent of patients who received standard-of-care treatment. EVT also reduced mortality, providing evidence that quickly removing a large-vessel clot could substantially improve a patient’s chances of surviving a severe stroke and returning to independent life. 

“And now, more than 10 years later, it is implemented in most countries.”

Dr. Michael Hill, MSc’03, MD, a stroke neurologist and professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Medicine, Radiology and Community Health Sciences, has collaborated extensively with Goyal, including on the ESCAPE family of trials.

"Dr. Goyal is a global leader in neuro-intervention and, simply stated, his research has changed the practice of medicine," says Hill.

Goyal also developed multiphase CT angiography, an imaging technique designed to rapidly identify patients most likely to benefit from treatment. The approach has been adopted around the world and has helped streamline decision-making when every minute matters.

His leadership of the international HERMES collaboration brought together patient-level data from major thrombectomy trials, producing evidence that has continued to shape stroke-treatment guidelines and clinical decision making globally.

“We focused on it from the perspective of imaging patients, decision making, how to move patients fast — given time is brain — and how to open the vessel,” says Goyal.

Within the Calgary Stroke Program, Goyal has worked for years alongside neurologists, neuroradiologists, neurosurgeons, physical medicine and rehabilitation physicians, imaging scientists, and clinical researchers. Many of the program’s landmark studies have paired his expertise in imaging and intervention with the clinical-trial and stroke-neurology expertise of colleagues in Clinical Neurosciences.

Goyal’s achievements have previously been recognized by organizations including the Canadian Association of Radiologists and the American Society of Neuroradiology, and he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2022.

“One of the greatest fortunes of my life has been to work with super smart people around me. And they are not only my colleagues, but also dear friends,” he says.

“The kind of stuff that we are talking about, whether it's in the past or the future, just cannot be done alone.”