Dr. Marc Huntoon

Marc Huntoon, MD, has been chosen to receive the 2025 John J. Bonica Award at the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA Pain Medicine) 24th Annual Pain Medicine Meeting on November 15, 2025, in Austin, TX. The honor is given annually to an individual who has demonstrated outstanding contributions to the development, teaching, and practice of pain medicine.

A leader and innovator in pain medicine, editor-in-chief of the Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (RAPM) journal for seven years, and a professor at several prestigious institutions, Dr. Huntoon has an impressive 30+ year career dedicated to the advancement of education, discovery, and patient safety.

“Dr. Huntoon is a natural educator,” wrote nominator Lynn Kohan, MD, a professor at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. “His leadership in this area is noted by his selection to serve as invited faculty at numerous international and national pain and anesthesia societies in which he never fails to deliver high quality lectures.”

Dr. Kohan noted that Dr. Huntoon has an extensive history of chairing pain society meetings, which she described as “a testament of his knowledge base, work ethic, and true dedication to enhancing our field of practice.” She noted that “He is also dedicated to mentorship and scholarship and is continually advocating for the advancement of up-and-coming colleagues in the field.”

Retired from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2023, Dr. Huntoon was a professor of anesthesiology and had served as vice chair of the department from 2020-2022 and director of chronic pain management from 2016-2020. Prior to that, he was chief of the pain management division at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, and medical director of the Vanderbilt Medical Group’s interventional pain clinic from 2011-2016. He was a professor of anesthesiology from 2009-2011 at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, MN, which he joined in 2001.

A leader and innovator in pain medicine, editor-in-chief of the Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (RAPM) journal for seven years, and a professor at several prestigious institutions, Dr. Huntoon has an impressive 30+ year career dedicated to the advancement of education, discovery, and patient safety.

Dr. Huntoon earned his medical degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, MI, completed his anesthesiology residency at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth, VA, and completed two fellowships – one in obstetric anesthesia at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, and one in pain medicine at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center. Dr. Huntoon is a retired lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve.

Having taught hundreds of fellows, residents, and medical students over his career, Dr. Huntoon describes himself as a “turn-around specialist” because of his demonstrated dedication to reviving and expanding programs and projects to ensure sustainability and vitality. His accomplishments extend to the medical society community as well, having served in several leadership roles with ASRA Pain Medicine, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the Association of Pain Program Directors, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the American Neuromodulation Society, the American Pain Society, and others. In 2020, ASRA Pain Medicine bestowed its Distinguished Service Award to Dr. Huntoon, who has been a member of the Society since 1991 and served in several committee and leadership roles. In addition, he was a founding member of the Virginia Pain Society and has served as that organization’s vice president since 2018.

As president of APPD, Dr. Huntoon was the first to initiate a collaboration with the National Resident Match to establish a fairly fellowship selection process and ensure program equity. In clinical practice, he introduced the ultrasound guidance and placement of peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) electrodes that revived “a dead technique,” as he described it, contributing to the development of what has evolved into four major companies that make minimally invasive approaches to PNS. He also led a charge to change the “use of particulate steroids for thoracic and cervical epidural procedures, saving many lives from either death or quadriplegia,” he said.

While editor-in-chief of RAPM, the journal’s impact factor increased to greater than 7, surpassing all but one other journal in the category. During his tenure, the journal introduced the first statistical editors, established executive editors for each section, and increased the journal’s frequency to monthly while broadening its coverage and appeal to both acute and chronic pain physicians.

The John J. Bonica award is named for the pioneering anesthesiologist regarded as the founding father of pain relief medicine. Dr. Bonica championed the collaboration of specialists from multiple disciplines in the evaluation and treatment of patients with pain. He wrote the first comprehensive textbook devoted to pain management, mentored clinicians and colleagues, and started the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP). Nominees for this award embody the ideals of John Bonica and his passion for pain medicine as manifested through their contributions by way of research, teaching, and clinical practice.