Professor Giancarlo Comi, neurologist of global stature, particularly in the field of multiple sclerosis (MS), has died. Giancarlo passed away at the age of 76, on 26 November 2024, after suffering a stroke.

He was an honorary professor of neurology at the Università Vita Salute San Raffaele and founder and director of the Institute of Experimental Neurology at the Scientific Institute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy.

Since 2013, he served as vice chair of the Progressive MS Alliance and a co-chair of the Industry Forum, a global alliance of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies focused on MS. He held the office of president of the European Neurological Society, the Italian Society of Neurology, and the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology. He was a fellow of the European Academy of Neurology (EAN) and chairman of the “Human Brains” scientific committee, and a section head of the annual Controversies in Neurology (CONy) meeting.

Many friends and colleagues will remember as Giancarlo’s most defining role that of being President of the European Charcot Foundation (ECF). The ECF holds an annual meeting in Baveno, Italy. The last weekend of the season, Giancarlo booked out an entire hotel for the ECF meeting, described by some as the smaller, more personal version of ECTRIMS; a sizeable international gathering but in a club atmosphere. Everyone who has ever attend the ECF remembers the positive vibe of these intense yet relaxed meetings by the Lago Maggiore. With and from this platform, Giancarlo had a unique talent to attract key stakeholders in MS, expediting new initiatives and developing people. He was the most kind and generous host of any meeting, always approachable by anyone – patients, student at any level, academic peers.

With an initial emphasis on the use of MRI in MS, Giancarlo has been a principal investigator of numerous phase II and III MS clinical trials. He authored over 1000 articles in peer-reviewed journals and edited several books. His H-Index stands at 141 with over 71000 citations to his name. He has been organizer and/or invited speaker for more than 500 conferences, both nationally and internationally. He was a co-editor of Neurological Sciences and a member of editorial boards of several international journals.

Giancarlo’s accolades include the ‘Gh. Marinescu’ award from the Romanian Society of Neurology, honorary memberships of ECTRIMS, the Russian Neurological Academic Society, the ENA, the Sociedad Espanola de Neurologia, the Société Francaise de Neurologie.

In 2015, he received the Charcot Award for MS Research from the MS International Federation (MSIF). He is a recipient of the Gold Medal of ‘Benemeranza Civica’ from the City of Milan and the honour of merit as Official by the President of Italy.

He will be dearly missed by MS and wider neurology communities worldwide.