Meet the 2025 Balfour and Kendall Awardees
A common curiosity
Stephanie Syc-Mazurek, M.D., Ph.D., and Laura Cacciaguerra, M.D., Ph.D., pursue answers and excellence
Stephanie Syc-Mazurek, M.D., Ph.D. (I ’21, N ’24, NAI ’25), and Laura Cacciaguerra, M.D., Ph.D. (N ’22), have a lot in common. They’re both fellows in autoimmune neurology at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. They share a research mentor, Eoin Flanagan, M.B., B.Ch. (I1 ’09, N ’12, NMS ’13, NAI ’14, NBN ’15, CTSA ’16), chair of the Division of Multiple Sclerosis and Autoimmune Neurology at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. They’ve each made significant contributions to the study of demyelinating diseases. They’ve published articles together. And they both have a deep intellectual curiosity and a methodical approach to satisfying that curiosity, Dr. Flanagan says.
“They’re so interested in finding out answers for questions that arise in patients,” he says. “They both definitely have that in abundance.”
Now they have one more thing in common: They are the recipients of the 2025 Mayo Clinic Alumni Association research awards. Dr. Syc-Mazurek is the recipient of the Donald C. Balfour Award for Meritorious Research and Dr. Cacciaguerra is the recipient of the Edward C. Kendall Award for Meritorious Research.
Of course, there’s plenty that sets Dr. Cacciaguerra and Dr. Syc-Mazurek apart. They’ve each carved out their own research niches within the world of demyelinating disorders. Dr. Syc-Mazurek is interested in discovering novel mechanisms of eye injury and disease associated with vision loss in the autoimmune and neuro-inflammatory realm, Dr. Flanagan says. Dr. Cacciaguerra is more involved in the MRI aspects of antibody-mediated demyelinating diseases and novel ways of assessing those to understand pathogenesis and inform clinical care. But the effects of their research have similar scope and impact.
“Both of them are really bringing research very much to immediate patient care; it’s immediately translatable to the clinic,” Dr. Flanagan says. “They’re informing diagnostic criteria, clinical trials and future patient care.”
Read their stories below.
Laura Cacciaguerra, M.D., Ph.D., isn’t afraid to venture into the unknown
Stephanie Syc-Mazurek, M.D., Ph.D., wants to answer questions for her patients
This story appears in the latest issue of Mayo Clinic Alumni magazine. You can read or download a PDF of the issue here.
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Illustrations by Ameesha Lee.