Exclusive: ACR Convergence 2024| Focus Rheums

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

Research Rheum

Productive Partnership

Sherine Gabriel, MD, and Leslie J. Crofford, MD  |  

The ACR and the REF work closely to support the future of rheumatology

Closer to a Cure

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Over the last two years, the Within Our Reach: Finding a Cure for Rheumatoid Arthritis campaign has granted almost $9 million to 30 researchers in the hopes of finding a cure for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). These researchers are studying an array of issues, from innovative research into the genetics of RA to new treatments that will more effectively manage the disease. With the REF’s announcement of the third round of Within Our Reach grant recipients, patients with RA are closer to a cure.

We Are All in This Together

Leslie Crofford, MD  |  

While rheumatologists in private practice face daily concerns regarding reimbursements and certifications, the Research and Education Foundation (REF) is working behind the scenes to help improve patients’ lives. Through its balanced core awards and grants portfolio, the REF supports education, training, and career development for the future academic workforce.

Reading Rheum

Daniel Hal Solomon, MD, MPH; Gail C. Davis, RN, EdD  |  

Handpicked Reviews of Contemporary Literature

Streamlined Funding Portfolio Increases Efficacy

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The ACR Research and Education Foundation recently completed a comprehensive review of its core awards and grants portfolio to assure that it was effective in meeting the needs of junior or early career physician-scientists and health professionals.

Reading Rheum

Eric Schned, MD; Michael M. Ward, MD  |  

Handpicked Reviews of Contemporary Literature

Sense of Smell

Yehuda Shoenfeld, MD  |  

Olfactory defects point to nervous system involvement in lupus

Demonstrators Demand More Money for Arthritis Research—What Could Happen?

Leslie Crofford, MD  |  

I recently came across a fictional publication called the Not Yet Gazette with a front-page story dated November 10, 2025, entitled, “Demonstrators demand more money for arthritis research.” The fictional report gave details of a crowd of 100,000, “many in wheelchairs,” confronting the health secretary of that time. The genesis of this fictional article was the observed trend towards the aging of the population and slow growth in research funding. The article stated that, “ ‘Fiscal constraints caused by slow economic growth and resistance to tax increases have greatly reduced allocations for medical research grants in recent years,’ [the health secretary] told the delegates. ‘Unfortunately, in our current political climate, funding for health research is limited,’ she said to reporters after the meeting. ‘We have to devote our limited resources to diseases that are more immediately life-threatening.’ ”

In America’s Recession, the REF Remains Strong

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According to a survey conducted in October 2008 by the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers, three-quarters of the region’s leading foundations and corporate giving programs suffered a decline in assets because of plummeting returns on investments over 2008. About one-third of the respondents said they reduced grant budgets from 2007 to 2008, and about half of the organizations said they plan to award fewer grants in 2009.