G. Walter Canonica

Giorgio Walter Canonica, MD, is professor of respiratory medicine at Humanitas University in Milan, Italy, and director of the Personalized Medicine Asthma and Allergy Center at the IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital in Milan.

Professor Canonica earned his medical degree from the University of Genoa in Italy. He first specialized in pulmonary diseases in Genoa, then in allergology and immunology at the University of Florence in Italy. He subsequently conducted clinical immunology and allergology research at several European and US universities and institutes, such as Biomedicum—Uppsala University in Sweden and the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, SC, USA. Upon his return to the University of Genoa in 1995, Professor Canonica has held a number of academic positions, including full professor of internal medicine, director of the Speciality School of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, full professor of pulmonary medicine, director of the Specialty School of Pulmonary Diseases, and chairman of the Department of Medical Specialties (University Hospital San Martino Genoa). Awards include Laurea Honoris Causa, conferred by the Cluj Medical University in Cluj, Romania.

Professor Canonica has served as president of various international organizations, including the World Allergy Organization; INTERASMA Global Asthma Association; the Italian Society of Allergy, Asthma, and Clinical Immunology; and the Italian Society of Respiratory Medicine. He currently serves as an executive committee member of Allergic Rhinitis and Its Impact on Asthma, a board member of Collegium Internationale Allergologicum and of the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network, vice president of the Respiratory Effectiveness Group, and chair of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) Methodology Committee. In addition, he is an advocate of the Global Initiative for Asthma and a member of the European Academy of Sciences and the Steering Committee of Severe Asthma Network in Italy. He is a fellow of EAACI; the European Respiratory Society; the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology; and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology. Professor Canonica is the author or co-author of more than 900 peer-reviewed papers.