Mark O.M. Tso, MD, is an American and Chinese ophthalmologist who served as Professor and Founding Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Much of his early research concerned ocular pathologic findings in retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma is a rapidly developing cancer that develops in the cells of retina, the light-detecting tissue of the eye. In the developed world, Rb has one of the best cure rates of all childhood cancers , with more than nine out of every ten sufferers surviving into...

 and laser effects on the retina

Retina

The vertebrate retina is a light-sensitive tissue lining the inner surface of the eye. The optics of the eye create an image of the visual world on the retina, which serves much the same function as the film in a camera. Light striking the retina initiates a cascade of chemical and electrical...

.

Education and career

Tso earned his M.D. from the University of Hong Kong in 1961. During training at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology

Armed Forces Institute of Pathology

The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology was a US government institution concerned with diagnostic consultation, education, and research in the medical specialty of pathology. It was founded in 1862 as the Army Medical Museum and was located in Washington, DC on the grounds of the Walter Reed Army...

 with famed ophthalmic pathologist Lorenz Zimmerman, Tso conducted early research on the micrologic features of retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma

Retinoblastoma is a rapidly developing cancer that develops in the cells of retina, the light-detecting tissue of the eye. In the developed world, Rb has one of the best cure rates of all childhood cancers , with more than nine out of every ten sufferers surviving into...

, including rosette formation. He was recruited to The University of Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary

The University of Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary

The University of Illinois Eye & Ear Infirmary houses the departments of ophthalmology and otolaryngology of the University of Illinois College of Medicine. Located in the heart of the Illinois Medical District, the Infirmary is a leading center for research and treatment of disorders of the...

 by Morton F. Goldberg, until his appointment in Hong Kong in 1994.

Offices held

• 1969 - 1971 Staff Ophthalmologist, Department of Ophthalmic & Pathology,

Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington, D.C., Major MC,
USA

• 1969 - 1971 Assistant Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology, The George

Washington University Medical Center, Washington, D.C.

• 1971 - 1972 Assistant Research Professor of Ophthalmology, The George

Washington University Medical Center

Washington University Medical Center

The Washington University Medical Center , located in St. Louis, Missouri, is a large scale health-care focused commercial development located in St. Louis' Central West End neighborhood. The Washington University Medical Center Redevelopment Corporation focuses on developing public-private...

, Washington, D.C.

• 1971 - 1976 Research Associate, Ophthalmic Pathology Branch, Armed Forces

Institute of Pathology, Washington, D.C.

• 1972 - 1976 Visiting Staff of Retina Clinics of George Washington University

Hospital, D.C., General Hospital & Freedmen Hospital

• 1973 - 1976 Associate Research Professor of Ophthalmology, The George

Washington University Medical School

• 1976 - 1994 Professor of Ophthalmology, Lions of Illinois Eye Research Institute,

University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Medicine, Chicago,
Illinois

• 1976 - 1994 Director of the Georgiana Theobald Ophthalmic Pathology

Laboratory, The University of Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary

The University of Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary

The University of Illinois Eye & Ear Infirmary houses the departments of ophthalmology and otolaryngology of the University of Illinois College of Medicine. Located in the heart of the Illinois Medical District, the Infirmary is a leading center for research and treatment of disorders of the...

,
University of Illinois at Chicago

University of Illinois at Chicago

The University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, near the Chicago Loop...

, College of Medicine, Chicago,
Illinois

• 1976 - 1994 Director of the Macula Clinic, University of Illinois Hospital Eye &

Ear Infirmary, University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Medicine,
Chicago, Illinois

• 1989 - 1994 Medical Director of Lions of Illinois Eye Bank, Lions of Illinois Eye

Research Institute, Chicago, Illinois

• 1994 - 1999 Professor and Founding Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology &

Visual Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

• 1994–2000 Chief of Service, Hong Kong Eye Hospital

• 1994 - 2000 Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Hong Kong

• 1997 - 1999 President, College of Ophthalmologists of Hong Kong

• 1997 - 2005 Councilor and Honorary Treasurer, Asia-Pacific Academy of

Ophthalmology

• 1998 - 2006 Vice President, International Council of Ophthalmology, elected in

May, 1997

• 2004–2005 Medical Director, National Neurovision Research Institute, (NNRI)

• 1999–Present Professor of Ophthalmology and Pathology, Johns Hopkins

University, School of Medicine

• 1997–Present Chair XI, Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis

• 1995–Present Adjunct Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Illinois at

Chicago

• 2001–Present Honorary Director and Professor of Ophthalmology, Peking

University Eye Center, Beijing

• 2006 – Present Education Director, International Council of Ophthalmology