In Vivo - EVP Journal

In Vivo

Cardiovascular Research Initiative Launched
Message from EVP
Dr. Lee Goldman
Rapid Test for Kidney Failure Developed
Kavli Prize for Neuroscience
Improving Dental Care for Dementia Patients
Mailman School Researcher:
Baby Boomer Healthcare Will
be Inadequate
Study Opportunity in Israel
Scenes from Graduation Ceremonies
Research Briefs
Guess Who´s Going into Urology?
New Cataract Surgery Technique Improves Vision
Children's Hospital to Host Major Conference for
Pediatricians
HIV Center Anniversary
Honors & Awards
Grants
CUMC at Large

EVP journal

Dear Colleagues & Students,

Just as big cities can be places where neighbors are often strangers, researchers in large medical centers run the risk of becoming isolated from other scientists. The complex nature of scientific research today, however, unquestionably requires collaboration. In an attempt to foster collegiality, teamwork and partnerships, we are increasingly bringing together researchers who work in similar fields – breaking down any artificial barriers to create new opportunities for researchers, and, ultimately, better treatments for patients.
   Examples of the wider worlds that have already been created here are the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, which serves as our central locus for diabetes research, and the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, which serves the same role for cancer research. Now, the Cardiovascular Research Initiative has been formed to serve as the hub for research on the heart and blood vessels.
   Columbia has a long history of excellence in cardiovascular research. P&S professors Andre Cournand and Dickinson Richards shared the 1956 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with German physician Werner Forssmann for discoveries concerning heart catheterization. Today, following in the footsteps of these great scientists, we proudly boast a cadre of talented and dedicated individuals who are investigating atherosclerosis, lipoproteins, coronary artery restenosis, arrhythmias, heart failure and transplantation, interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, and molecular cardiology. Collectively, cardiovascular researchers here are supported by more than $75 million in NIH grants.
   In 2004, interventional cardiology research was strengthened when the physicians who now comprise the Center for Interventional Vascular Therapy, or CIVT, were recruited not only for their clinical expertise but also to conduct research on devices and treatments for coronary artery disease. Two top priorities for our researchers are the genetic basis of heart disease and the imaging of the heart and blood vessels to gain a better understanding of disease processes.
   The priorities of the initiative include funding existing research programs and developing new programs; establishing an optimal physical location for our cardiac researchers, to enhance their ability to collaborate with colleagues; recruiting talented researchers at the assistant and associate professor levels; and supporting a high-profile seminar series for distinguished speakers, who will be designated as Wu Visiting Professors.
   The Cardiovascular Research Initiative will be strengthened by its relationship with the Vivian and Seymour Milstein Family Heart Center now under construction. This collaboration will promote greater integration of research and clinical medicine in cardiac care. Columbia physicians are renowned for cardiac patient care; with our hospital partner, NewYork-Presbyterian, our doctors treat some of the most complex cardiac cases in the world. In fact, many patients who cannot be helped elsewhere come here, where every patient receives the most advanced, comprehensive care.
   Under the outstanding leadership of Alan Tall and Robert Kass, the Cardiovascular Research Initiative will propel CUMC into the very highest leadership position in cardiovascular research. Heart patients everywhere will ultimately benefit from the innovations that will emerge from our laboratories and clinical trials.

Lee Goldman, M.D.