Dr. Alvarez obtained a Bachelor of Science in Pre-Med and Chemistry from the University of Dayton, Ohio (1974). He received his doctorate in Biochemistry from Rutgers University in 1979. He was an NIH Postdoctoral fellow and a Wound Healing Fellow at the Department of Dermatology, University of Miami School of Medicine from 1979-1980. Dr. Alvarez is the recipient of the 21st Annual John Boswick Award for lifelong achievement and dedication in the field of wound care. Dr. Alvarez has been awarded 90 research grants. Dr. Alvarez served as a member of the Agency Health Care Policy and Research, a panel for guideline development in the prevention and management of pressure ulcers. Dr. Alvarez was Director of the Curative and Palliative Wound Care Center at Calvary Hospital, Bronx, NY from 2004-2016, and as Program Director of the Vascular and Wound Care Center at University Hospital, Newark, NJ from 2017-2020. Dr. Alvarez is a founding editor of the journal WOUNDS and is Senior Editor of Wound Repair and Regeneration. He has authored over 200 peer- reviewed publications relating to wound care. Dr. Alvarez has also been principal investigator in more than 60 major clinical trials.

Currently, Dr. Alvarez is Program Director (Emeritus), Vascular and Wound Care Center and Professor (Adjunct) in the Department of Surgery at Rutgers, New Jersey Medical School. He is also a Voluntary Associate Professor, Phillip Frost Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL