America's leading doctors: from treating heart disease to fighting cancer, These physicians are changing world of medicine.

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THEY'RE AMONG THE BEST AND brightest in medicine, Collectively, these physicians have saved millions of lives through revolutionary treatments of diseases ranging from cancer and diabetes to heart attacks and HIV/AIDS, Many have been responsible for major medical breakthroughs and have participated in the creation of drugs that have improved the quality of life of patients at home and abroad.

This is the caliber of medical professional who can be found on BLACK ENTERPRISES'S list of America's Leading Doctors. The roster boasts 140 African American physicians and surgeons located in various parts of the country and running practices in a range of specialties, including neurology, obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), dermatology, urology, cardiology, pediatrics, and oncology. The following served as the criteria for inclusion on the list:

* All physicians are leaders in their respective fields.

* All have been confirmed as being certified (as of March 21, 2008) in accordance with the American Board of Medical Specialties, a nonprofit organization that represents the "gold standard" in physician certification and helps 24 approved medical specialty boards in the creation and use of standards in the evaluation of doctors. While medical licensure sets the minimum competency requirements to diagnose and treat patients, it is not as comprehensive as board certification.

We did not include physicians who are retired, engaged purely in medical research, no longer treat patients, or no longer have an affiliation with the medical profession.

In the development of this list, our editors spent more than six months engaged in research, consulting organizations such as the National Medical Association, American Medical Association, Association of Black Cardiologists, American Cancer Society, Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, American Diabetes Association, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We also contacted top-ranked physicians as well as the nation's leading medical schools, including Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, Meharry Medical College, Howard University College of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons Weill Medical College of Cornell University, and Mayo Medical School. These institutions provided our research team with a list of physicians who they viewed as a cut above in service and reputation. Moreover, experts supported their choices, supplying us with the details of their colleagues' experience, reputation, background, and training. What sets this year's list apart from previous rosters--BE developed similar listings in 1988 and 2001--is that we gave a stronger weighting to innovative doctors who have been involved in medical breakthroughs across specialties. (See "A Legacy of Medical Excellence," About This Issue.)

With the current national focus on health, BE took this opportunity to once again compile our exclusive list. It not only reveals top-rated physicians advancing medicine but it also provides access to doctors you can trust with your life and the well-being of your family.

Specialty: Neurosurgery

Keith Black, M.D.

Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery; Director, Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

EARLY IN HIS MEDICAL CAREER, BLACK BECAME FASCINATED WITH THE INNER workings of the human brain. This interest led him to pursue a career in neurosurgery with a special focus on brain tumors. For Black, the most difficult part of his job is treating malignant brain tumors. He maintains that half of all brain tumors are malignant and can't always be cured. In those cases, "physicians can improve the quality of life and extend life with surgery and other treatments but they cannot cure the disease," he says.

As chairman of the department of neurosurgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, this top-rated surgeon manages, among other duties, the hospital's neurosurgical institute, which has a staff of 33 neurosurgeons and a faculty of 11 academic neurosurgeons who teach residents and perform research in addition to surgery. "We're actively involved in the training of the next generation of neurosurgeons," Black says.

He seeks to change cancer treatment by reducing and possibly eliminating the need for chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation treatments. "We are learning how important it is to also use the body's immune system to fight tumors," he says. In fact, Black and his team of researchers are working on a vaccine developed in his research lab. The team has treated about 100 patients with positive results. "And with the most aggressive cancer, called a gleoblastoma, we've shown that we can increase the chance of survival at two years from 8% to 42%, using this vaccination in combination with chemotherapy and surgery," says Black. Through such leadership, Black has made Cedars-Sinai one of the top neurosurgical centers in the country.--Sheiresa McRae

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Specialty: Obstetrics & Gynecology

Linda Bradley, M.D.

Vice Chairman of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health Institute and Director, Center for Menstrual Disorders. Fibroids, and Hysteroscopic Services. Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology. Cleveland Clinic Foundation

ONE OF THE NATION'S TOP OBSTETRICIANS, BRADLEY IS CONSIDERED AN INNOVATIVE leader in the field of hysterectomy alternatives and the evaluation of abnormal uterine bleeding. Tills internationally recognized surgeons work involves the study of novel procedures, technologies, and medications to treat women who have uterine fibroids and abnormal bleeding. "Fibroids are like a thumbprint. Everyone is very different," Bladley says.

African American women face a higher risk than others, with as many as 50% to 80% having fibroids of a significant size. Of the 600.000 hysterectomies performed annually in the U.S., a third or these cases are related to fibroids. making it a major health issue for women. "A hysterectomy has been the standard [treatment]." says Bradley. "But women are having children later in life. Many now want to keep their uterus and maintain fertility."

The 52-year-old practitioner pioneered hysteroscopy--the use of a thin telescope to view the uterus. "It is an office-based evaluation instead of taking patients to the operating room for medical discovery." she explains. Bradley is principal investigator for new procedures such as endometrial ablation (removal of the uterine wall) and myomectomy (removal of fibroids leaving the uterus intact). She has also been involved with several clinical trials for embolization, a procedure to shrink fibroids, and has established a very successful collaborative practice with interventional radiologists to refer women for the uterine sparing procedure.--Carolyn M. Brown

Specialty: Urology

Arthur L. Burnett II M.D.

Title: Director, Male Consultation Clinic; Professor, Department of Urology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

BURNETT REPAIRS LIVES. HIS PROWESS IN TREATING PATIENTS WITH SEVERE urological conditions has earned him ranking among the top urologists in the nation. He has built this reputation over the past 25 years, sharing his expertise in areas such as prostate cancer, pelvic reconstruction, sexual medicine, and female urology. He also directs the Male Consultation Clinic for the treatment of male sexual disorders.

Burnett, a graduate of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, is director of the Basic Science Laboratory in Neuro-Urology, a major operation within the James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute. With his eight-person team, he is currently involved with as many as 20 different research projects, seeking to uncover new procedures to correct urological disorders. In fact, some of his past work has literally enhanced the quality of life for millions. In 1990, Burnett was one of the leading scientists who discovered the role of nitric oxide biochemical mechanisms for erectile dysfunction. His team's groundbreaking research paved the way for the clinical development of Viagra.

For years, Burnett has played a role in increasing the pipeline of minority physicians and medical researchers. In fact, he annually selects about eight minority college students for summer internships at the research laboratory.

With Burnett's myriad projects, he has not lost sight of quality healthcare here and abroad. He performs surgeries weekly while providing top-flight patient care, working closely with them before and after treatment. And he also continues his work to help Caribbean nations develop programs to treat prostate cancer.--Tracey Brown

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Specialty: Surgery

Edward E. Cornwell, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.C.C.M.

Surgeon-in-Chief, Howard University Hospital; LaSalle D. Leffall Professor and Chairman of Surgery, Howard University College of Medicine

CORNWELL, 51, HAS ACHIEVED NATIONAL RECOGNITION FO INCREASING SIZE, SCOPE and improvements in trauma practices and patient care at some of the nation's leading medical institutions. In fact, he has spent his career working in communities where young African American males are victims of fatal gunshot wounds. "A phenomenal percentage of gunshot wounds were coming in dead on arrival. So, further improvements were needed in outreach and violence prevention beyond hospital wails," says Cornwell, who made violence prevention a focal point of mainstream academic surgery.