Arthritis Foundation Presents Scientific Research Prizes at Annual Pathways Conference
Lee C. Howley Senior and Junior Prizes honor research and volunteerism.
ATLANTA (March 31, 2025) — Honoring physician-scientists is a longstanding Arthritis Foundation tradition. At its 2025 Pathways Conference, the Arthritis Foundation presented the Lee C. Howley Senior Prize for Arthritis Scientific Research to Kurt P. Spindler, MD and the Lee C. Howley Junior Prize for Early Career Investigators in Arthritis Research to Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD. Both were honored not only for their significant arthritis-related research but also their exceptional commitment to volunteer work.
Dr. Spindler is the Associate Chief, Clinical Research, Cleveland Clinic Enterprise and Professor of Orthopaedics, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western. He is the founder of the Multi-center Orthopaedic Outcomes Network (MOON), an evidence-based medicine effort supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Through his work with MOON to identify the risk factors for posttraumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) after knee ACL injury and treatment for over 20 years, Dr. Spindler has engaged with the Arthritis Foundation in think tanks, research strategy committees and in clinical studies networks. He also serves on the executive committees for the Foundation’s PIKASO Trial and the ongoing Osteoarthritis Prevention (TOPS) Trial.
“I am honored beyond measure,” says Dr. Spindler. “The Arthritis Foundation has played a pivotal role on a national level in stimulating research in OA and PTOA. It has been my pleasure to participate, and I look forward to many more discoveries that improve patient care. Thank you so much for this honor.”
Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD, is Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Associate Physician, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation and Immunity. She is dedicated to conducting health equity research, improving care delivery for patients with complex, chronic diseases and social risk factors, and growing the rheumatology workforce to serve disparate patient communities. Dr. Feldman currently leads a multisite grant from the Arthritis Foundation to build a national academy to advance and enrich workforce diversity in rheumatology and she serves on the Arthritis Foundation DEI Task Force.
“I am so honored to receive this award,” says Dr. Feldman. “I am a tremendous admirer of the work the Arthritis Foundation does for people living with arthritis, and also the work they do to support us as physicians and researchers.”
About the Arthritis Foundation
The Arthritis Foundation is fighting for all people who live with arthritis. The Foundation’s mission is to turn the obstacles arthritis causes into opportunities. The Arthritis Foundation champions life-changing solutions and medical advancements, and it also provides ways for people to connect, break down barriers in health care and join the fight for a cure — uniting hearts, minds and resources to change the future of arthritis. To join the fight to conquer arthritis, visit arthritis.org.
Dr. Spindler is the Associate Chief, Clinical Research, Cleveland Clinic Enterprise and Professor of Orthopaedics, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western. He is the founder of the Multi-center Orthopaedic Outcomes Network (MOON), an evidence-based medicine effort supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Through his work with MOON to identify the risk factors for posttraumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) after knee ACL injury and treatment for over 20 years, Dr. Spindler has engaged with the Arthritis Foundation in think tanks, research strategy committees and in clinical studies networks. He also serves on the executive committees for the Foundation’s PIKASO Trial and the ongoing Osteoarthritis Prevention (TOPS) Trial. “I am honored beyond measure,” says Dr. Spindler. “The Arthritis Foundation has played a pivotal role on a national level in stimulating research in OA and PTOA. It has been my pleasure to participate, and I look forward to many more discoveries that improve patient care. Thank you so much for this honor.”
Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD, is Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Associate Physician, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation and Immunity. She is dedicated to conducting health equity research, improving care delivery for patients with complex, chronic diseases and social risk factors, and growing the rheumatology workforce to serve disparate patient communities. Dr. Feldman currently leads a multisite grant from the Arthritis Foundation to build a national academy to advance and enrich workforce diversity in rheumatology and she serves on the Arthritis Foundation DEI Task Force. “I am so honored to receive this award,” says Dr. Feldman. “I am a tremendous admirer of the work the Arthritis Foundation does for people living with arthritis, and also the work they do to support us as physicians and researchers.”
About the Arthritis Foundation
The Arthritis Foundation is fighting for all people who live with arthritis. The Foundation’s mission is to turn the obstacles arthritis causes into opportunities. The Arthritis Foundation champions life-changing solutions and medical advancements, and it also provides ways for people to connect, break down barriers in health care and join the fight for a cure — uniting hearts, minds and resources to change the future of arthritis. To join the fight to conquer arthritis, visit arthritis.org.
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