The Lundquist Institute Awarded a $3M NIH Grant to Explore Better, Safer Treatment for Heart Disease

The Lundquist Institute announced Monday, July 20, 2020 that a team of investigators, lead by renowned cardiac researcher Matthew Budoff, MD, has been awarded a $3 million R-01 grant award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to explore a better way to treat those with heart disease. Researchers will try to determine whether calcification outside the heart has an impact on the likelihood of developing heart disease and stroke.  These findings could have a significant, direct and positive impact on current medical practices, delivering appropriate preventative treatment early on and emphasizing therapeutic intervention for those with higher predicted risk.

More specifically, the team of investigators will study whether extra-coronary calcifications signal a higher risk for cardiovascular disease, and whether using less-invasive non-contrast chest CT scans can effectively measure both coronary arch calcification and extra-coronary calcification.

“Dr. Budoff has done groundbreaking work on heart disease for years, and we are excited that he has received this grant to undertake this important study,” said David Meyer, PhD, President and CEO of The Lundquist Institute. “Heart disease remains the number one killer of Americans, and research like Dr. Budoff’s is critical in changing it.”

You can read the full announcement here.