Harvard Professor Dr. Christine Edry Seidman to receive The Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement at the Annual Texas Update Conference

Over the past six decades, physicians and scientists at the Texas Heart Institute have worked diligently with colleagues around the world to find ways to combat the various physiological and behavioral risk factors and the genetic alterations associated with cardiovascular disease. To recognize those whose innovations have made significant contributions to cardiovascular medicine and surgery, The Texas Heart Institute presents the Texas Heart Institute Medal and The Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement to a deserving recipient.

 

First presented in 1972 to Dr. Norman Shumway, this honor has gone to 39 highly deserving individuals, including THI’s late Founder Dr. Denton A. Cooley and, this past year, Dr. Emerson C. Perin for his significant contributions to regenerative medicine and stem cell research and for developing novel approaches to treat patients with ischemic cardiomyopathies and heart failure.

 

In 2020, Harvard Professor, Christine Edry Seidman, MD, will be the 40th and the very first woman recipient of Texas Heart Institute’s highest honor presented at THI’s annual Texas Update in Cardiovascular Medicine Symposium on January 18th, 2020 in the Texas Heart Institute Ansary Atrium.

 

Dr. Seidman is the director of the Cardiovascular Genetics Program and a cardiovascular medicine specialist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). In addition, she is the Thomas W. Smith Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She received her medical degree from The George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences. She completed an internal medicine residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and a cardiology fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

 

Dr. Seidman is a pioneer in elucidating genetic causes for heart disease and other disorders. Her notable achievements include the discovery of the first genetic cause of congenital heart malformations, and she is translating research discoveries into better diagnostics and improved management strategies. She has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed articles and received research funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the National Institutes of Health.

 

In recognition of her scientific contributions, she was elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI,), the National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Medicine.  She has received numerous awards, including the Distinguished Scientist Award from the American Heart Association and the Bristol-Myers Squibb Award for Distinguished Achievement in Cardiovascular Research.

 

“We are honoring Dr. Seidman for her tremendous work in identifying molecular mechanisms involved in the development of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and other heart diseases, and more recently, her research into small molecules that inhibit the development of cardiomyopathies in patients,” said  James T. Willerson, MD THI’s President Emeritus.

 

Ray C. Fish was a leading figure in Houston’s natural gas industry and a philanthropist. He believed in the American dream of opportunity for success. The Ray C. Fish Foundation was established so that others might be encouraged to broaden humanity’s self-knowledge and to keep the American dream alive. After its founder’s death from heart disease, the Fish Foundation granted a major gift to make the Texas Heart Institute a reality. For this reason, the Institute’s highest professional award honors this extraordinary man.

 

The 19th Texas Update in Cardiovascular Advancements, which will be held on the same day of the Ray C. Fish award luncheon, will include a special presentation by Dr. Seidman: Molecules, Mechanisms, and New Medicines for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

THI members and leaders in the field of cardiology will present on the latest cardiovascular care topics at the same meeting. The complete scientific program is shown here.

  • Update on PCSK9 Inhibitors in Treating Elevated LDL | Vijay Nambi, MD, PhD
  • Advances with TAVR: Should It Replace Surgery for Most Patients with Valvular Aortic Stenosis? |  David Fish, MD
  • Catheter Based Repairs of the Mitral Valve: What is the Best Approach | Guilherme V. Silva, MD
  • Treating Ventricular Arrhythmias by Catheter | Mohammad Saeed, MD
  • Treating Post-Menopausal Women with Hormonal Therapy: What is Safest and Best? | Stephanie Coulter, MD
  • Will Treatment of Heart Failure Include Allogenic Mesenchymal Stem Cells with FDA Approval in 2020 and Beyond? | Emerson Perin, MD, PhD
  • Advances in Treating Heart Failure by Stimulating Cardiogenesis Directly in Preclinical Models with Ischemic Injury and CHF | James F. Martin, MD, PhD
  • The Role of Inhibitors of Glucose and Sodium Transport in the Treatment of Heart Failure |  Darren K. McGuire, MD, M.H.Sc.

 

Learn More & Register for the luncheon and conference online