Howley Prizes for Arthritis Research
The Lee C. Howley Sr. Prize for Arthritis Scientific Research and the Lee C. Howley Jr. Prize for Early Career Investigators in Arthritis Research recognize those who have committed to advancing the Arthritis Foundation’s scientific agenda.
The 2024 Lee C. Howley Sr. Prize Recipient
The Arthritis Foundation has awarded the 2024 Lee C. Howley Sr. prize to Kurt P. Spindler, MD. This award recognizes physician-scientists who have made important contributions to arthritis-related research and have show exceptional commitment to volunteer work through the Foundation.
Dr. Spindler, associate chief of clinical research for Cleveland Clinic, is dedicated to the development, implementation, oversight and optimization of clinical research for the entire organization. In addition to having maintained clinical and surgical practice in orthopedic sports medicine, he has served as an NCAA Division 1 team physician, an educator, professor and mentor to clinician scientists and clinician scholars across all fields of medicine.
He has been a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded researcher since 2006, is an active reviewer for the NIH and has served as a permanent member of two NIH study sections. Additionally, Dr. Spindler led the development of a scientifically valid, cost-effective and scalable clinical outcome tracking system, called Outcomes Management and Evaluation (OME), which has helped transform clinical research as well as clinical practice, and he helped Cleveland Clinic become a leader in clinical outcomes, multicenter studies and musculoskeletal research.
One of his major endeavors has been to identify risk factors for post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) after knee ACL injury, which has led him to participate in research strategy committees and clinical studies networks with the Arthritis Foundation. He participated in its Osteoarthritis Clinical Trials Network (OACTN), Segal North American Osteoarthritis Workshop (SNOW) conferences, is a reviewer for the Foundation’s grants, and he serves on the executive committees for The Osteoarthritis Prevention Study (TOPS) and PIKASO (Preventing Injured Knees from Osteoarthritis Severity Outcomes) trial.
Dr. Spindler continues to be active and a leader in regional, national and international orthopedic and sports medicine professional organizations. He was appointed the 50th president of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) in 2022. He currently serves as co-chairman of the Clinical Scholar Career Development Program for the Orthopaedic Research Society/ Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation/American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (ORS/OREF/AAOS) and he is co-chair of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs) Taskforce for AAOS. He has published over 325 peer-reviewed publications and given over 700 presentations, principally on clinical outcomes, evidence-based medicine, and knee ligament healing. Dr. Spindler received the Kappa Delta award in 2012 and 2019, and the AOSSM O’ Donahue award in 2001, 2014 and 2017.
“I am honored beyond measure. The Arthritis Foundation has played a pivotal role on a national level in stimulating research in OA and PTOA,” said Dr. Spindler. “It has been my pleasure to participate, and I look forward to many more discoveries that improve patient care. Thank you so much for this honor.”
The Lee C. Howley Jr. Prize Recipient
The Arthritis Foundation is pleased to announce its first Lee C. Howley Jr. Prize to Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD. This award recognizes an early career physician-scientist who has made important contributions to arthritis-related research and has shown exceptional commitment to volunteer work through the Foundation.
Dr. Feldman received her bachelor’s, master’s and medical degrees from Yale University, and completed her residency and fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She is currently an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and an associate physician at Brigham and Women’s, where she co-directs the Health Equity Initiatives.
Her research portfolio includes large database studies, community-engaged research, and intervention design and analysis with a focus on understanding and addressing structural drivers of inequities and the burden of social risk factors. She has extensively studied and defined inequities in rheumatic disease care and outcomes and she has designed and led community and academic-based interventions to begin to address the needs uncovered.
Dr. Feldman has served as a member of the Arthritis Foundation’s DEI Task Force and is a reviewer of grant applications. She currently leads a multi-site grant from the Arthritis Foundation to build a national academy to advance and enrich workforce diversity in rheumatology.
“I am so honored to receive this award. I am a tremendous admirer of the work the Arthritis Foundation does for people living with arthritis, and also the work they do to support us as physicians and researchers,” said Dr. Feldman.
See past Howley Prize recipients.
Prize Criteria
Prize
A prize of $10,000 is presented by the Arthritis Foundation. Support is provided by a generous endowment from the Howley Family. Prize recipients must apply the prize funds toward the field of arthritis research (e.g., travel to a professional meeting to present findings, mentoring a student, laboratory costs, publication costs, etc.).
Eligibility
Presented to an individual researcher based at a US institution who demonstrates a strong commitment to advancing arthritis research, including impacting patient outcomes and quality of life. The recipient’s research contributions should significantly advance the understanding, treatment or prevention of arthritis and related diseases. In addition, the individual will also have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to volunteer work through the Arthritis Foundation, with a notable impact in furthering the Foundation’s mission. Nominations will be made by the Foundation’s national Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee and Foundation staff. Self-nominations and posthumous nominations will not be accepted. Past recipients are not eligible. Nominations will take place in September and October.
Frequency
One prize is given each year. The recipient will be notified in December of that year. A formal announcement and in-person prize presentation will occur at the Arthritis Foundation Pathways conference (usually held in the Spring of the following year).
Lee C. Howley Jr. Prize for Early Career Investigators in Arthritis Research
Prize
A prize of $5,000 is presented by the Arthritis Foundation. Support is provided by a generous endowment from the Howley Family. Prize recipients must apply the prize funds toward the field of arthritis research (e.g., travel to a professional meeting to present findings, mentoring a student, laboratory costs, publication costs, etc.).
Eligibility
Presented to an early career researcher based at a US institution who demonstrates a firm commitment to arthritis research, including impacting patient outcomes and quality of life. The individual should have a strong scientific track record and a record of service to the Arthritis Foundation. The individual must have held an independent, full time faculty position for no more than 8 years at the time of nomination. Full professors are not eligible. Nominations will be made by the Foundation’s national Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee and Foundation staff. Self-nominations and posthumous nominations will not be accepted. Past recipients are not eligible. Nominations will take place in September and October.
Frequency
One prize is given each year. The recipient will be invited to attend the Arthritis Foundation Pathways conference (usually held in the Spring) for an in-person prize presentation.
Past Howley Prize Recipients
Research Grants for Rheumatoid Arthritis | Arthritis Foundation
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