Archives for February 2021

Cardio-Oncology Specialty Interest Group

ASE is pleased to announce the establishment of the Cardio-Oncology Specialty Interest Group (SIG). ASE members Alexandra Gardner, RDCS, and Henry Cheng, MD, have organized this SIG to provide a forum for physicians and sonographers who perform echocardiograms on patients undergoing cancer treatments and survivors to share knowledge. Other leaders in the field, including Juan Lopez-Mattei, MD, FASE, (@onco_cardiology), will be involved to inform and advance this community. Recent advances in the field, since the publication of the ASE/EACVI guideline “Evaluation of Adult Patients Before and After Cancer Therapy,” will also help guide the direction of this SIG.

Interested in joining this group? Learn more here.

ASE SIGs are volunteer-led groups created to bring together members who have similar interests in emerging, specialized areas of cardiovascular ultrasound. SIGs provide a forum for networking, knowledge sharing, and the development of SIG-specific programs and services within ASE. Learn more about ASE SIGs here.

Pfizer Grant Opportunities in Amyloid

Below are three grant opportunities in amyloid that may of particular interest to our ASE members involved in research and quality initiatives. Please see below for more details on these opportunities from Pfizer.

“Pfizer Global Medical Grants (GMG) supports the global healthcare community’s independent initiatives (e.g., research, quality improvement, or education) to improve patient outcomes in areas of unmet medical need that are aligned with Pfizer’s medical and/or scientific strategies.

Pfizer’s GMG competitive grant program involves a publicly posted Request for Proposal (RFP) that provides detail regarding a general area of interest, sets timelines for review and approval, and notes who will make final grant decisions. Organizations are invited to submit an application addressing the gaps as outlined in the RFP.

For all independent medical grants, the grant requester (and ultimately the grantee) is responsible for the design, implementation, and conduct of the independent initiative supported by the grant. Pfizer must not be involved in any aspect of project development, nor the conduct of the independent program.

Please scroll down to find information on the following three RFPs:

  1. Quality Improvement Grants to Support Development of Cardiac Amyloid Centers
  2. Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis Fellowship
  3. Local Level Educational Grants Program to Increase Awareness & Understanding of Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)

Refer to complete details in the full RFP documents. If you have questions regarding these RFPs, please direct them in writing to Amanda Stein, Grant Officer (amanda.j.stein@pfizer.com).

1. Request for Proposals (RFP): Quality Improvement Grants to Support Development of Cardiac Amyloid Centers

Date RFP Issued:  February 8, 2021
Geographic Scope:  United States
Clinical Area:  Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)
Link to full RFP:  Quality Improvement Grants to Support Development of Cardiac Amyloid Centers
Application Due Date:  April 8, 2021
Specific Area of Interest:  Projects that will be considered for Pfizer support will focus on supporting the development of cardiac amyloid centers that provide leadership, best practices, support and/or training of HCPs within a multidisciplinary team environment in order to improve the quality of care for cardiac amyloidosis patients.

2. Request for Proposals (RFP): Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis Fellowship

Date RFP Issued:  February 8, 2021
Geographic Scope:  United States
Clinical Area:  Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)
Link to full RFP:  Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis Fellowship
Application Due Date:  June 15, 2021
Specific Area of Interest:  It is our intent to support institutions with fellowship programs for Cardiologists that have a strong focus on clinical practice, research, and education to further the understanding of transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis.

3. Request for Proposals (RFP): Local Level Educational Grants Program to Increase Awareness & Understanding of Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)

Date RFP Issued:  February 8, 2021
Geographic Scope:  United States
Clinical Area:  Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)
Link to full RFP:  Local Level Educational Grants Program to Increase Awareness & Understanding of Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM)
Application Due Date:  2021 application windows – please see RFP for details
Specific Area of Interest:  Projects that will be considered for Pfizer support will include local/community activities that focus on improving the care of patients by:

  • Educating [HCPs] to increase awareness and enable appropriate patient identification by closing knowledge gaps in disease epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and emerging treatment paradigms.
  • Addressing barriers to appropriate diagnosis and strategies that reduce burdens for patients and providers along the pathway to appropriate diagnosis
  • Exploring strategies that empower patients to play an active role in understanding TTR amyloidosis and decision making regarding available diagnostic and treatment options
  • Increasing awareness of the changing epidemiology of TTR amyloidosis with a focus on the prevalence of hereditary ATTR and wild-type ATTR subtypes as the science continues to evolve
  • Increasing awareness of at risk and undiagnosed populations with TTR amyloidosis with a focus on improving strategies that facilitate the appropriate diagnosis of patients early in the disease course before overt cardiomyopathy has ensued [e.g. populations with electrical disturbances, valvular disease, orthopedic manifestations, and cardio-oncology diseases (i.e. Light Chain Amyloidosis)]
  • Increasing awareness of bone radiotracer scintigraphy as a non-invasive alternative to invasive endomyocardial biopsy for the appropriate diagnosis of TTR cardiac amyloidosis in select patients
  • Supporting the dissemination of information related to the pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic management of ATTR-CM
  • Addressing geographic and racial healthcare disparities
  • Addressing challenges to appropriate diagnoses and caring for patients during an era of increased telehealth utilization
  • Supporting the development of cardiac amyloid centers that provide leadership, best practices, support and/or training of HCPs within a multidisciplinary team environment in order to improve the quality of care for cardiac amyloidosis patients.”

JASE – Always Getting to the Heart of Echo

The February JASE contains, “Pediatric Heart Network Echocardiographic Z Scores: Comparison with Other Published Models,” by Leo Lopez, MD, FASE, et al. Dr. Lopez commented, “Echo Z-scores are used widely in pediatrics to determine normal reference ranges, but few data exist comparing the various Z-score models that have been published. This article highlights the differences among the most popular Z-score models (including the recently published Pediatric Heart Network Z-score model) as well as the limitations with using an individual model for specific therapeutic guidelines in various disease states.”

Additional clinical investigations in this issue focus on RVEF by 3D echo and its prognostic value, LV strain, exercise echocardiography, LA mechanics as markers of risk, and impact of appropriateness of an echo order. A state-of-the-art review explores usefulness of stress echo in the management of patients treated with anticancer drugs. Several brief research communications and letters to the editor round out the explorations.

February is American Heart Month, and ASE President Judy Hung, MD, FASE, has dedicated her President’s Message to our members, “The Heart of the ASE.” The ASE Education Calendar pulses with opportunities.

The JASE Submission Overview webinar, presented last Tuesday by JASE Editor-in-Chief, Michael Picard, MD, FASE, along with Associate Editor, Benjamin Eidem, MD, FASE, and Deputy Editor, Victor Mor-Avi, PhD, FASE, was a resounding success. The webinar slide sets, a succinct tutorial on creating an optimal submission, are housed on the JASE homepage, and the recorded webinar, which is free for members, is located on ASE’s Learning Hub.

January GEMs

During the month of January, two ASE members were recognized for Going the Extra Mile and received a GEM award!

  • Yvette Carvallo, RDCS, RVS, FASE
  • Christin Reese, RCS

Read what their nominators had to say about them!

Do you know an ASE member who’s gone the extra mile? Join us in celebrating ASE members who are making the world a better place, be it for their dedication to the field of cardiovascular ultrasound, being an outstanding mentor to students or fellows, their commitment to quality patient care, a milestone service anniversary, or congratulating them on a major accomplishment. Learn more about how to nominate someone here.

ASEF Announces Open Application Period for Innovation in Cardiovascular Ultrasound Research Grants

Applications are now being accepted for the Innovation in Cardiovascular Ultrasound Research Grants. The ASE Foundation is proud to offer two grants of up to $45,000 each for meritorious echocardiographic research proposals relevant to innovation in cardiovascular ultrasound. Of particular interest are proposals that expand the key role of echocardiography, or the development of novel technology, in clinical diagnosis or management. Applications are due by Monday, March 15, 2021 at 5:00 PM EDT. Full application details can be found here.

LIVE WEBINAR: Sonographer Professional Development with Live Q&A

Join us for a live webinar focusing on five important professional development topics for cardiac sonographers. Sonographer Professional Development, will be held on Thursday, February 18, 2021 at 12:00 PM EST. It will feature eight experts in the field, all with different backgrounds and career paths. Attendees will not only have the opportunity to learn from the legends, but will also be able to give feedback on future webinar topics.

This webinar will cover the basics of the following topics:

  • Resume vs. CV
  • “Echo Tech” vs. “Sonographer”
  • How to interview for the Echo Job
  • How to grow your Position
  • Benefits of FASE, BS, MS, or ACS

Registration is FREE for active ASE members. This activity does not offer CME credit.

  1. To register, login to your ASE member portal.
  2. Select the ASE Learning Hub from the top red menu.
  3. Register for the webinar here.

The webinar will also be posted afterward for on-demand viewing on the ASE Learning Hub. Questions? Please contact us by submitting an Education & Meetings Help Desk Ticket.

This webinar is a part of a series of webinars that highlight an ASE member benefit and offer attendees the opportunity to meet and interact with key ASE leaders.