by the Rector
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
Dear Students,
It is with great pride that I welcome you to the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (N.K.U.A.) and to our Medical Degree English program.
Founded in 1837, N.K.U.A. is the oldest University in Greece and a leading institution in education and research in Europe. Our commitment to academic excellence, innovation, and international collaboration is reflected in the quality of our programs and the achievements of our graduates.
By joining our academic community, you become part of a long and proud tradition. We are confident that your time here will be intellectually rewarding and personally enriching. You will receive a world-class medical education while experiencing the rich cultural heritage of Athens.
I wish you every success in your studies and personal growth, and I look forward to witnessing your contributions to the field of Medicine and beyond.
Warm regards,
Professor Gerasimos Siasos
Rector, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
Professor Gerasimos Siasos
Gerasimos Siasos is a Professor of Cardiology and the Rector of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. He has been a Visiting Professor at Harvard Medical School (2015-2016), Dean of the School of Medicine (2021-2023), Vice Dean of the School of Medicine (2019-2021) and President of the University Hospitals “Aretaieion” and “Aiginiteio” (2019- 2021). Gerasimos Siasos graduated from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Medicine (NKUA). He was unanimously elected to all Academic ranks at the School of Medicine at NKUA. He has worked at the First Department of Cardiology (Hippokration Hospital) and was Head of the Atherosclerosis Unit and the Biochemical, Immunological and Molecular Biology Unit in the same department. He has also established and is still directing the “Heart and Diabetes” Unit for patients who suffer from heart disease and diabetes. He led the way in the establishment and operation of the 3 rd Department of Cardiology in Sotiria Hospital, where he serves as a doctor and is the president of the working group “Heart and Diabetes” of the Hellenic Society of Cardiology. His research work focuses on: Molecular Cardiology, Atherosclerosis, Endothelial Function, Diabetes Mellitus in patients with Cardiovascular Disease. He is the author (or co- author) of more than 400 peer-reviewed publications in highly prestigious international scientific journals with a total Impact Factor > 1,500, and more than 16,000 citations (h-index 63). He ia a Section Editor for Cardiovascular Diseases in the international biomedical journal Current Medicinal Chemistry (IF: 4.740). His writing work includes the editing of 20 books and journals on Cardiology.
by the Program Director
Dear Students,
Welcome to the Medical Degree English program at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (N.K.U.A.).
Our goal is to attract top international students and renowned faculty, ensuring that our graduates are both highly employable and respected in the global medical community. We are proud that our School of Medicine ranks consistently among the world’s top 150.
Choosing to study here is an honor for us and a responsibility we take seriously. The coming months may be challenging as you adapt to a new culture and academic environment. Embrace this opportunity—learn, grow, and participate actively in our academic community.
We hope your six-year journey will be rich in knowledge, friendships, and unforgettable experiences, preparing you to become excellent physicians and compassionate individuals.
Warm wishes for a successful academic path,
Professor Nikolaos Arkadopoulos
Dean, School of Medicine Director, Medical Degree English Program
Professor Nikolaos Arkadopoulos
Professor Nikolaos Arkadopoulos completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Athens School of Medicine. He received his MD, Magna Cum Laude in 1991 and his PhD from the same University in 1999. He completed a general surgery residency at Aretaieion Hospital in Athens and a Fellowship at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, UCLA School of Medicine in USA. He is currently a Professor of Surgery at the University of Athens School of Medicine and Chairman of the 4th Department of Surgery at Attikon University Hospital in Athens, Greece. His clinical focus is on oncological surgery, mostly breast and HPB, an area in which he has pioneered innovative procedures. He supervises an extensive program of research both experimental and clinical and has published 250 Pubmed-indexed full papers, as well as 250 abstracts. Professor Arkadopoulos has given more than 200 invited lectures and has received 40 national and international awards for his research work and academic achievements. In 2021 Professor Arkadopoulos was elected Vice Dean and in 2023 Dean of the University of Athens School of Medicine. He is also the President of the Greek Chapter of the American College of Surgeons and the Vice President of the Athens Medical Society.
Committee Members
Konstantinos Tsioufis
Vice Dean, School of Medicine – Vice Director, Medical Degree English program
Professor Konstantinos Tsioufis
Konstantinos Tsioufis is Professor of Cardiology and Director of the 1st Department of Cardiology, University of Athens, Hippokration Hospital, Greece. Prof Tsioufis works as an interventional Cardiologist and Hypertension Specialist. He has special interest in cardiorenal disease, heart failure, hypertension, neuromodulation, coronary and structural heart disease. He was a post-doctoral fellow at the Veterans Affairs Medical Centre, Georgetown University Washington DC, USA. He has more than 1020 publications in peer-reviewed Journals, H-index> 70, more than 19.000 citations. Member of the Task Force for the 2018 ESC/ESH hypertension guidelines, 2021 ESC guidelines on CV prevention and for the 2023 ESH hypertension guidelines. He is currently Vice Dean of the School of Medicine, University of Athens and President of Helenic Society of Hyperension. He has served as President of European Society of Hypertension (2017-19) and President of the Hellenic Society of Cardiology (2016-18).
Efthimia Basdra
Director, Department of Basic Medical Sciences
Professor Efthimia Basdra
Efthymia Basdra is a Professor of Biochemistry–Biomechanics at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). She graduated from the School of Dentistry at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, completed her postgraduate studies at Columbia University in New York, USA, and obtained her PhD (Magna cum Laude) and habilitation (Priv.Doz.) at the Medical School of the University of Heidelberg, Germany. She is Vice President and Chief Executive Officer at the Eugenides Hospital.
Her research interests and scientific publications (H-index 41, citations >5500) focus on molecular mechano-medicine and its correlation with (patho)biological processes such as remodeling, healing, fibrosis, and oncogenesis. She serves on the Editorial Board and as a reviewer for journals in the fields of basic research and mechanoinduction–biomechanics, and has received numerous national and international awards and honors.
She has served as a member of the International Relations Committee of NKUA, a member of the Fund-Raising department of CIVIS, and is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Athens Medical School, a member of the School’s General Assembly, and Director of the Department of Basic Medical Sciences.
She served as President of the State Scholarships Foundation of Greece. From 2016 to 2018, she was an advisor to Eurobank on matters of excellence and scholarships in higher education and is currently a member of the Advisory Board of diaNEOsis.
Pagona Lagiou
Dean, School of Health Sciences
Professor Pagona Lagiou
Pagona Lagiou, MD, MSc, PhD
Dean, School of Health Sciences, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), Greece
Professor and Chair, Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology & Medical Statistics, School of Medicine, NKUA, Greece
Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, USA
Dr. Lagiou graduated (summa cum laude) from the School of Medicine, NKUA. She is board-certified in Internal Medicine, as well as Public Health & Social Medicine. She holds graduate degrees in Epidemiology from Harvard University and NKUA. She is Professor and Chair at the Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology & Medical Statistics, School of Medicine, NKUA, and Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Lagiou has served as Foreign Adjunct Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the Karolinska Institutet, Sweden and as Fellow of the Bureau of Epidemiologic Research in the Academy of Athens.
She currently serves as Dean of the School of Health Sciences at NKUA.
Her research focuses on the epidemiology and prevention of chronic diseases. Dr. Lagiou has served as a Panel Member at the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), and as a Panel Member and Chair of the Consolidator Grants Panel at the European Research Council (ERC). She has participated/participates in several national and international committees on public health-related issues.
In April 2025, PubMed listed 511 scientific papers coauthored by PL. SCOPUS and Google Scholar, respectively, listed 34,087 and 62,188 citations to her work and an h-index of 97 and 130.
Nikolaos Tentolouris
Director, Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine
Professor Nikolaos Tentolouris
Nikolaos Tentolouris received the medical degree from the Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), Athens, Greece in 1986 and the specialty title in Internal Medicine in 1997. He worked in the field of diabetes mellitus, metabolic and endocrine diseases at the University of Manchester, UK. He is the director of the 1st Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine, Medical School, NKUA, Laiko General Hospital, in Athens. He has participated in scientific and organizational committees of international and national conferences. He is the Coordinator of the Graduate Program of the School of Medicine of the NKUA entitled “Diabetes Mellitus-Obesity”. He contributed to 7 International and 8 Greek multi-authored medical books on diabetes and Internal Medicine. His research work includes more than 340 publications in international journals that have received more than 17,000 citations and h-index 63 (Google Scholar). He is currently the president of the Hellenic Society of Internal Medicine, chair of the postgraduate committee of the Medical School, NKUA and he served as Scientific Secretary of the Diabetic Foot Study Group (DFSG) for 6 years and member of the Executive Committee of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) (2017-2018).
Nikolaos Kavantzas
Director, Department of Clinical Laboratory
Professor Nikolaos Kavantzas
Professor Nikolaos Kavantzas has graduated from the School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in 1990. He obtained the medical specialty of Pathology in 1996. Also, he obtained a Ph.D. in Pathology from the School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in 1993. Since 1998 he was Lecturer, Assistant Professor (2003), Associate Professor (2009) and Professor (2015) in Pathology of 1st Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. From 2021-2024, he was the Director of the same Department. His teaching work concerns the pregraduate teaching of medical and dentistry students at the 1st Department of Pathology with focus on teaching clinical pathology and promotion of critical medical thinking through clinicopathologic correlations. His postgraduate teaching concerns the participation in 6 postgraduate programs of School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Since September 2014, he is the Director of Postgraduate Program of Athens University School of Medicine entitled: “Environment and Health. Management of Environmental Health Effects”. Also, he has participated as trainer or coordinator in more than 250 Continuing Training Courses, Meetings, Conferences ecc. His clinical/diagnostic work concerns the general and systematic pathology as well as lung pathology mainly in “Laikon” General Hospital of Athens, where the 1st Department of Pathology is installed. He has published over 250 research articles in mainly biomedical international journals and he has more than 130 presentations in european and international congresses. He was contributed as supervisor or member of the commission in more than 50 PhD theses and in more than 50 postgraduate dissertations. In his career, he has already more than 6000 citations. Likewise he has been reviewer in 7 international journals. His main research activities concern in detecting prognostic markers mainly in neoplastic diseases using image analysis methods (Quantitative Pathology). More specifically he is responsible of the Quantitative Pathology Unit (Image Analysis) of the 1st Department of Pathology since 1996. During this period, he has supervised or carried out more than 100 research projects that mainly concern in quantitative histochemistry and immunohistochemistry, nuclear morphometry and static cytometry. These projects have resulted in 60 articles in international journals and 40 doctoral theses. His research interest include also lung pathology and old pathology specimens’ collections. He participated in totally 18 research programs financed by the Greek Government and/or EU. Among them BrainNet Europe II Network of Excellence (2004-2009) and HIPON web-based lifelong learning project (2013-2015).
Nikolaos Vlahos
Director, Department of Mother and Child’s Health
Professor Nikolaos Vlahos
He graduated from the University of Athens Medical School in June of 1989 with Honors.
He was accepted by the State University of New York, where he specialized in Obstetrics and Gynecology (1992-1997) and became Board Certified by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
In 1997 Dr. Vlahos was accepted as a fellow by the Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore USA, where he trained for three years in order to attain the subspecialty in Reproductive Endocrinology. In 1999 was Lecturer, in 2002 was Assistant Professor and between 2000-2004 was Assistant Professor.
In September 2004 he is offered the position of Assistant Professor at the Aretaieio Hospital of the University of Athens, as director of the division of Assisted Reproduction. In December 2010 he is promoted to the position of Associate Professor and he became the director of the department of Endoscopic surgery. In May 2015 Dr. Vlahos was promoted to the position of Full Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Assisted Reproduction.
From September 2019 up to now is the Director and Chairman of the 2nd Department of Obstetrics and Gyneology at the Areteieion University hospital.
From September 2021 up to now he is member of the Academic Planning and Development Committee of the Medical School of Athens, and from September of 2021 up to now member of the Extraversion and International Relations Committee.
From September 2022 up to now he is a member of the Undergraduate Program of the Medical School of Athens, “Medical Degree in English”.
From September 2023 up to August 2025 he is member of the Board of Directors, of the Medical School of Athens.
Petros Sfikakis
Professor, Internal Medicine & Rheumatology
Professor Petros Sfikakis
Petros P. Sfikakis received his MD from the Medical School of the National & Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). He pursued postgraduate doctoral studies and trained in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology in academic units in Greece, at the Walter Reed Medical Center, Washington DC and at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD, where he started his academic career as Assistant Professor of Medicine. Since 1995 he serves at the NKUA Medical School as a Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor (2009) of Internal Medicine & Rheumatology, and Chairman of the First Dept. of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine at Laikon Hospital (2013-2025). Between 2015 and 2021 was the Dean of the Medical School, as well as the first Deputy Director of the Medical Degree in English Program. In 2020 he established the Center of New Biotechnologies and Precision Medicine of the NKUA Medical School, which he is still directing. His research interests include clinical and translational research in the field of systemic autoimmune diseases, with special emphasis on the pathogenesis and treatment of Systemic Sclerosis and Adamantiades-Behcet’s disease. He has (co)authored more than 500 original research publications (Google Scholar H-index=84)
Sotirios Tsiodras
Professor, Medicine and Infectious Diseases
Professor Sotirios Tsiodras
Sotiris Tsiodras is Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the National and KapodistrianUniversity of Athens Medical School and the Chief Scientific Advisor for the COVID-19 pandemic for the Hellenic CDC and the Greek Government. He completed post graduate training in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Harvard Medical School in the USA. Professor Tsiodras also holds a master’s degree in the Medical Sciences from Harvard Medical School and was a recipient of the Clinical Investigator Training Program fellowship conducted by Harvard Medical School and the MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology both in Boston, MA. He has a PhD in Medicine from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Medical School. He is a member of the European CDC Advisory Forum since 2009 and a fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA); he also has served as the secretary of the ESCMID Study Group for Respiratory viruses. He has published more than 250 peer-reviewed papers in international journals and is currently doing clinical work and research in internal medicine and infectious diseases.
Vana Papaevangelou
Professor, Pediatric Infectious Diseases
Professor Vana Papaevangelou
Professor Vana Papaevangelou is a trained paediatrician, with a special interest in paediatric infectious diseases. After completing her paediatric residency and PID fellowship at the NYU Medical Centre, USA, she returned to Athens Greece and has been a full-time academic paediatrician in tertiary teaching hospitals since 1996. Professor Papaevangelou has been actively involved in the education of medical students and paediatric residents. She is part of the ERASMUS funded IDEALITER project (https://ideal.u-paris.fr/category/idealiter/) and the co-director of the master’s degree program on Pediatric Infectious Diseases of NKUA. Between September 2013-May 2024 she was appointed Chairman of the Third department of Pediatrics of her University which is located at ATTIKON hospital, a tertiary University Hospital.Over the past 35 years, Professor Papaevangelou has been actively involved in multiple research projects. Her main interests involve the epidemiology of vaccine-preventable diseases and vertical transmission of infections. She is a member of the National Advisory Board for Immunization Practices and a Board member of the Greek CDC (EODY). She served as a Board member of ESPID 2019-2022. Prof V Papaevangelou has published more than 200 papers in peer reviewed journals, with an H-Index: 41 and more than 5600 citations.
Vassilis Gorgoulis
Professor, Histology – Embryology
Professor Vassilis Gorgoulis
Dr. Gorgoulis is currently Professor and Director of the Department of Histology–Embryology, Medical School, National Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece. He is also elected Chair and Professor of Clinical and Molecular Pathology, Medical School, University of Dundee; Adjunct Professor at the Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens; Honorary Professor, Institute of Cancer Sciences, University of Manchester, UK; and elected European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) member.
Main research interests include: Mechanisms leading to genomic instability; The DNA damage response network as an anti-tumor barrier (eliciting apoptosis or senescence) and mechanisms leading to escape from these barriers; Development of new compounds and methods to detect senescent cells; Development of machine learning algorithms to predict biological/drug responses.
Prof Gorgoulis has 359 publications and >47600 citations, with h-index: 86. He counts >250 communications in international conferences and seminars, and contributed 16 chapters in international text-books.
He received >30 awards/distinctions and is a reviewer in >60 peer-reviewed scientific journals (eg Nature, Cell, EMBO J) and 30 National and International Funding programs (eg ERC reviewer and panel member; EMBO Young Investigators; Cancer Research UK).
Alexios-Chrysostomos Kelekis
Professor, Histology – Embryology
Professor Alexios-Chrysostomos Kelekis
Professor Alexios-Chrysostomos Kelekis is Professor of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology.
He hοlds a medical degree and PhD from School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and has completed extensive international training in Greece, Belgium, and Switzerland. He holds the specialization of Interventional Radiology.
Professor Kelekis is currently Director of the 3rd Radiology Department at the Medical School of the University of Athens, based at General Hospital LAIKON. His clinical expertise centers on spine, musculoskeletal, and oncologic interventions, particularly minimally invasive and image-guided procedures.
An accomplished academic, he has authored over 149 PubMed-indexed publications, with more than 3300 citations and an H-index of 30. He has delivered 275+ invited lectures and serves on editorial boards of prominent journals such as Radiology, Radiographics and section editor in Neuroradiology. He holds leadership rοles in numerous international societies, including current President of the Society of Interventional Oncology (SIO).
Throughout his career, Professor Kelekis has contributed to innovation in image guided therapies, such as interventional MRI, interventional oncology, image guided spine and pain management, education of radiology students and professionals, and advancement of radiologic standards, bοth nationally and internationally.
Leonidas Stefanis
Professor, Neurology – Neurobiology
Professor Leonidas Stefanis
Professor Leonidas Stefanis obtained his Medical Degree and a PhD in Molecular Medicine at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). He trained as a Neurologist and Neurobiologist at Columbia University in New York. Since 2003, he is working back in Greece, as a clinician/scientist at the Medical School in NKUA and as a Researcher in the Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens (BRFAA), where he has established a laboratory of neurodegenerative diseases. Since 2017, he is Director of the First Department of Neurology of the NKUA at Eginitio Hospital, the largest Neurology Department n Greece, with diverse clinical and teaching activities at the Undergraduate and Postgraduate level. His main clinical focus is Movement Disorders, and in particular Parkinson’s Disease and other synucleinopathies. He runs a Clinic for Movement Disorders, offering opportunities for genetic, biomarker and other translational research. He is following the largest worldwide cohort of subjects with genetic synucleinopathies, and he has established a European Center of Excellence on Rare Neurological Diseases. He is further examining, using cellular and animal models, the inter-related pathways of alpha-synuclein regulation and associated neurotoxicity, with an emphasis on the involvement of protein degradation pathways.
