Christine E. Seidman, MD
Ray C. Fish (1902–1962) 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 man's self-knowledge and to keep the American dream alive. After its founder's death from heart disease, the Fish Foundation granted $5 million to make the Texas Heart Institute a reality. For this reason, the Institute's highest professional award is given in honor of this extraordinary man. The award recognizes those whose innovations have made significant contributions to cardiovascular medicine and surgery.
The first Texas Heart Institute Medal and Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement in Cardiovascular Diseases were presented in 1972 to Dr. Norman Shumway. Since 1972, 39 other highly deserving recipients have been so honored by the Institute. The complete Roll of Recipients begins on the next page.
Christine E. Seidman, MD
The 2020 Fish Award recipient is Christine Edry Seidman, MD. She is the 40th person and the first woman to receive the Texas Heart Institute's highest honor.
Dr. Seidman directs the Cardiovascular Genetics Program at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and she is the Thomas W. Smith Professor of Medicine and Genetics at Harvard Medical School. Specializing in determining molecular mechanisms underlying cardiovascular disease, she was the first to discover a genetic origin of congenital cardiac malformations. From almost the beginning of her research career through the present, she has described the roles of genes and their mutations in familial hypertrophic and dilated cardiomyopathy, and she has expanded this investigation into the causes of many other conditions. She also has board certifications in cardiovascular disease and internal medicine, and she continuously applies her scientific findings toward precise diagnostic approaches, improved clinical management, and effective therapies. She is a prolific author and coauthor, with more than 400 peer-reviewed publications.
Dr. Seidman earned her medical degree from the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences (1978). She completed her internal medicine residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital (1981) and cardiology fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital (1986). She became a full professor at Harvard Medical School in 1997.
Dr. Seidman has been elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation (1992), National Academy of Medicine (1999), American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1999), and National Academy of Sciences (2005). Prominent among her numerous honors are the American Heart Association's Distinguished Scientist Award, and the Bristol-Myers Squibb Award for Distinguished Achievement in Cardiovascular Research.
In his comments, James T. Willerson, MD, President Emeritus of the Texas Heart Institute, noted, “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.”
In summary, Dr. Seidman's pioneering discoveries in cardiovascular genetics will continue to facilitate deeper knowledge and effective therapies.
Roll of Recipients of the Texas Heart Institute Medal and the Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement in Cardiovascular Diseases
| 1972 |
Norman E. Shumway Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart Transplantation) |
| 1973 |
F. Mason Sones, Jr. Cardiology (Coronary Angiography) |
| 1974 |
Eugene E. Braunwald Physiology (Myocardial Preservation) |
| 1975 |
Willem J. Kolff Cardiovascular Surgery (Artificial Organs) |
| 1976 |
Harvey Feigenbaum Cardiology (Echocardiography) |
| 1977 |
John W. Kirklin Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart-Lung Machines) |
| 1978 |
Bernard Lown Cardiology (Cardiac Arrhythmias) |
| 1979 |
John J. Gallagher and William C. Sealy (co-recipients) Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Pre-Excitation) |
| 1980 |
W. Proctor Harvey Cardiology (Clinical Practice and Teaching) |
| 1981 |
Paul M. Zoll Cardiology (Pacemaking) |
| 1983 |
Andreas R. Grüntzig Cardiology (Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty) |
| 1984 |
Hein J.J. Wellens and Douglas P. Zipes (co-recipients) Cardiology (Diagnosis and Management of Pediatric Cardiac Arrhythmias) |
| 1985 |
Denton A. Cooley Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease, Aneurysms of the Aorta, and Implantation of the Artificial Heart) |
| 1986 |
William J. Rashkind Pediatric Cardiology (Nonsurgical Treatment of Congenital Heart Disease) |
| 1987 |
Dwight E. Harken Cardiovascular Surgery (Intracardiac Surgery) |
| 1988 |
J. Willis Hurst Cardiology (Writing and Teaching) |
| 1989 |
Robert J. Hall Cardiology (Clinical Practice and Teaching) |
| 1990 |
Sol Sherry Cardiology (Thrombolytic Therapy) |
| 1992 |
Arthur S. Keats Cardiovascular Anesthesiology |
| 1997 |
Aldo R. Castañeda Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery |
| 1997 |
Julio C. Palmaz Radiology (Endovascular Stents) |
| 1998 |
Magdi Yacoub Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart-Lung Transplantation) |
| 1999 |
Thomas J. Fogarty Cardiovascular Surgery (Medical and Surgical Devices) |
| 2004 |
James L. Cox Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Atrial Fibrillation) |
| 2004 |
Stephen Westaby Cardiovascular Surgery (First Clinical Trial of Axial-Flow Devices for Destination Therapy and Significant Contributions to the Surgical Literature) |
| 2007 |
Charles E. Mullins Pediatric Cardiology (Teaching and Pioneering Work in Interventional Techniques for Congenital Heart Disease) |
| 2008 |
O.H. Frazier Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart Transplantation and Research and Development of the Left Ventricular Assist Device) |
| 2009 |
James T. Willerson Cardiology (Pioneering Work in Unstable Atherosclerotic Plaques, Acute Coronary Syndromes, and Cardiac Stem Cells) |
| 2010 |
Charles D. Fraser, Jr. Cardiovascular Surgery (Development of a Program Known for Its Effectiveness in Correcting Congenital Cardiovascular Disease in Children) |
| 2011 |
Patrick W. Serruys Interventional Cardiology (Major Contributions to Interventional Cardiology, Including Those to the Development of Both Bare-Metal and Drug-Eluting Stents) |
| 2012 |
George J. Reul Cardiac and Vascular Surgery (Development of an Accredited Vascular Lab at SLEH; Leader in Quality Measures) |
| 2013 |
Alain G. Cribier Interventional Cardiology (First Balloon Dilation of Aortic Valve for Calcific Aortic Stenosis, 1985; and First Implantation of a Prosthetic Aortic Valve via Cardiac Catheterization, 2002) |
| 2014 |
Terence English Cardiovascular Surgery (Establishing Heart Transplantation Program in England) |
| 2015 |
Delos M. Cosgrove Cardiovascular Surgery (Significant Contributions to Cardiac Valve Repair) |
| 2016 |
David A. Ott Cardiovascular Surgery (Knowledge of and Exceptional Technical Expertise in Cardiovascular Surgery) |
| 2018 |
Joseph S. Coselli Cardiovascular Surgery (Knowledge of and Exceptional Technical Expertise in Thoracoabdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair) |
| 2019 |
Emerson C. Perin Interventional Cardiology (Research in Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cells, and Development of Novel Stem Cell Treatments for Patients) |
| 2020 |
Christine E. Seidman Cardiovascular Genetics (Research in Molecular Mechanisms of Cardiomyopathy and Other Heart Diseases) |