TCT 2023 Career Achievement Award to be Presented to Stuart J. Pocock, PhD

NEW YORK – March 30, 2023 – The TCT 2023 Career Achievement Award will be presented to Stuart J. Pocock, PhD, during Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT), the annual scientific symposium of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF). TCT will take place October 23-26, 2023, in San Francisco at the Moscone Center. The award is given each year to an outstanding individual who has made significant contributions to the field of interventional cardiology and transformed patient care through their career endeavors, research pursuits, and mentorship.

Professor Stuart Pocock is a behind-the-scenes giant in bringing life-saving and quality-of-life-enhancing therapies to individuals with cardiovascular disease. As a professor of medical statistics for more than three decades at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, he uses his statistical and methodological expertise to bring forth the evidence for (or against, when relevant) cutting-edge technologies in interventional cardiovascular medicine and heart failure. Through his innovative statistical approaches, Professor Pocock’s work has provided vital, data-driven insights for clinicians to use in their daily practice and made immeasurable contributions to the body of evidence-based literature in cardiology.

“Over the years, Stuart has been the clinical trial ‘master craftsman and interpreter’ on behalf of the interventional community,” said Martin B. Leon, MD, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of CRF. “His creative approach to clinical trial design and his unique style of making complex concepts understandable to mere clinicians are unique attributes. As the behind-the-scenes architect of innumerable landmark trials, he has provided indispensable expertise and wisdom, setting the standard for generating meaningful evidence which has changed clinical practice.”

Professor Pocock’s primary research interests center around major clinical trials in cardiology, focusing on methodological developments and applied collaboration. He is also interested in observational epidemiology, particularly pharmaco-epidemiology. Currently, Professor Pocock, along with his colleagues, directs a statistical center for the design, conduct, analysis, and reporting of major clinical trials, chiefly in cardiovascular diseases. A frequent lecturer on a variety of clinical trial topics, he is also a consulting expert statistician for a wide range of clinical trials and serves as a statistical member of many trial data-monitoring and steering committees.

“We couldn’t be more honored to bestow this award upon Stuart,” said Gary S. Mintz, MD, TCT Program Director. “Throughout his career, he has championed the importance of properly designed and executed clinical trials, especially in the field of interventional cardiology, helping to establish it as an academically focused, data-driven field.”

“Stuart is emblematic of all the biostatisticians who have helped make interventional cardiology a remarkable, evidence-based field,” added Juan F. Granada, MD, CRF’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “His calm and thoughtful nature, as well as his passion for education and collaboration, have advanced the field and helped demonstrate the safety and efficacy of numerous therapies for heart disease patients all over the world.”

Professor Pocock earned his PhD and MSc in medical statistics at London University and his BSc in mathematics from Cambridge University. He is involved in several international collaborations with, among others, the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares, in Madrid, and the Cardiovascular Research Foundation and Mount Sinai School of Medicine, in New York. He is the author of a popular textbook, “Clinical Trials: A Practical Approach,” and more than 600 articles in peer-reviewed journals. His intent has been to optimize the scientific collaboration between statisticians and cardiologists/researchers, always ensuring that complexities are clearly explained. His wisdom, teaching, and leadership have guided many students, fellows, and colleagues in both statistics and medicine to pursue successful careers in medical research.

Previous winners of the TCT Career Achievement Award include Geoffrey O. Hartzler, MD; David R. Holmes, MD; Patrick W. Serruys, MD, PhD; John B. Simpson, MD; Antonio Colombo, MD; Julio C. Palmaz, MD; Donald S. Baim, MD; William W. O’Neill, MD; J. Eduardo M.R. Sousa, MD, PhD; Eugene Braunwald, MD; James T. Willerson, MD; Paul Yock, MD; Barry T. Katzen, MD; Seung-Jung Park, MD; Spencer B. King III, MD; Alain G. Cribier, MD;  Eric J. Topol, MD; Renu Virmani, MD; Andreas Gruentzig, MD; Michael J. Mack, MD; John E. Abele; and Runlin Gao, MD; Elazer Edelman, MD, PhD; Bram Zuckerman, MD; Robert O. Bonow, MD, MS; and Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD.

About CRF and TCT

The Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) is one of the world’s leading nonprofit organizations specializing in interventional cardiology innovation, research, and education. CRF is dedicated to helping doctors improve survival and quality of life for people suffering from heart and vascular disease. For over 30 years, CRF has helped accelerate medical breakthroughs and educated doctors on the latest treatments for heart disease. CRF’s centers of excellence include the CRF Skirball Center for Innovation, CRF Clinical Trials Center, CRF Center for Education, CRF Digital, TCTMD, and Structural Heart: The Journal of the Heart Team.

Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) is the annual scientific symposium of CRF and the premier educational meeting specializing in interventional cardiovascular medicine. Every year, TCT features major medical research breakthroughs and gathers leading researchers and clinicians from around the world to present and discuss the latest evidence-based research in the field.

For more information, visit www.crf.org and www.tctconference.com.

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