The Adult Congenital Heart Association (ACHA), the only nonprofit in the country dedicated solely to the unique needs of nearly 2 million adults born with heart defects, has awarded its 2023 research grants.

Since the launch of its emerging research program in 2019, ACHA is the only national patient advocacy organization focusing solely on ACHD research. Through its research grants, ACHA emphasizes the importance of partnership among patients, their families, and the medical field.

“Research is one of the noblest duties of the modern physician and provides the impetus to change the practice of medicine,” said ACHA Medical Advisory Board Chair Dr. Richard Krasuski. “We have come so far in the field of ACHD based on the prior efforts of researchers. Success in this area requires creative thoughts, flexibility, and perseverance. It also requires a source of funding. That is why I am so proud of ACHA, our ACHD community, and most importantly our donors for supporting these research projects.”

Learn more about this year’s research grant recipients from the Adult Congenital Heart Association.

All grants were awarded through a double-blind process with two teams of reviewers. One was comprised of Medical Advisory Board members, including ACHD cardiologists, nurse practitioners, and nurses. The other was comprised of patients and family members across the country, including peer mentors, board members, fundraisers, and more.

“We are thankful for the generosity of our research donors who allowed us to launch our research initiative and fund 18 investigations over the past four years,” said ACHA President and CEO Mark Roeder. “We are proud to be the only national patient advocacy organization solely dedicated to funding ACHD studies. And we are also proud that our review process includes both patient and medical reviewers to ensure that the patient voice is included in all our research funding decisions.”

The research proposals covered a variety of topics, which were reviewed according to scientific merit and relevance to the ACHD population. Scoring included areas such as significance and innovation, approach and methodology, and investigator track record and qualifications.

“With the core of ACHA’s program in traditional research grant funding, as well as the continual additions of new focus areas for ACHD research as the program grows, we look forward to the results and impact of our current funded studies,” said Roeder. “And with the support of the entire ACHD community, we can’t wait to see where the future takes us. A special thanks goes to the Meil Family Foundation for allowing us to continue to increase our research focus on neurodevelopmental issues, and to Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson for expanding its longstanding partnership with ACHA by adding research to the list of mission activities they support for the ACHD community.”

ACHA thanks the following donors for their contributions in support of its Research Fund: Anne Stapleton Reilly, Brad’s Heart of a Jayhawk Research Fund, the Dale Amorosia Heart Fund, Diana J. Kalman, Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, the Jim Wong Memorial Fund, Laurie Rae Graham Bennett, the Meil Family Foundation, the Robby Klaber Research Fund, Susan Timmins, and Ted and Donna Wagner.

Learn more about the Adult Congenital Heart Association, as well as how to contribute to the ACHA Research Fund.