Enduring Hearts Funded Study and Researcher, Palak Shah, MD wins the James T. Willerson Award for Best Research Paper 2021 in Circulation Magazine

Dr. Shah received funding for this research on genomic biomarkers from Enduring Hearts in 2017, after American Heart Association had turned down his study. Our Scientific Advisory Committee members were very enthusiastic about the potential discoveries his research could provide. We are excited to see Dr. Shah not only be recognized for publication but also to see the scientific value from his work help to close the knowledge gap in the field and have the potential to advance treatment for children with heart transplants. Dr. Shah’s has now secured an additional $1 million dollars in funding to continue this important work.

“My early career aspirations were focused on developing novel genomic biomarkers that could be used to manage heart transplant patients. I had initially applied for an American Heart Association career development award and wasn’t funded. Disappointed, I had considered shifting career paths when an opportunity for funding came from Enduring Hearts Foundation. Four-years later our research on genomic biomarkers is leading to novel diagnostic and management strategies for heart transplant patients across the globe, this includes donor-derived cell-free DNA, and microRNAs which are specific to cellular and antibody-mediated rejection.” Dr. Palak Shah, Inova Fairfax.