ABOUT SARVER HEART CENTER, DR. FRANK I. MARCUS & Dr. Jared Churko

The Sarver Heart Center at the University of Arizona

The Sarver Heart Center at the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ was founded as the University Heart Center in 1986. It was renamed the Sarver Heart Center in 1998 to honor the Sarver family for their generous support of the center. It is a 30,000-square-foot addition to the original College of Medicine building. The center is composed of more than 150 physicians and scientists with national and international reputations. The Sarver Heart Center is dedicated to preventing and curing cardiovascular disease through research, education and patient care. The Sarver Heart Center has earned a national reputation through a variety of notable accomplishments, world-renowned physicians and cutting-edge research. Reports by U.S. News & World Report and other well-known publications confirm that heart care at the Sarver Heart Center is among the best in the nation. For more information about the Sarver Heart Center visit www.heart.arizona.edu.

Dr. Frank I. Marcus

Dr. Frank I. Marcus was the founding chief of the College of Medicine cardiology program at the Sarver Heart Center. Dr. Marcus was also a world-renowned authority on ACM, not only in the U.S., but in many European countries.

Dr. Marcus and Dr. Guy Fontaine co-authored and published the first document ever written about ACM in 1982. For over 50 years, Dr. Marcus devoted his life to ACM research, published more than 300 manuscripts, and received many prestigious awards including the Johns Hopkins Award of Excellence in ARVD in 2009, a Distinguished Alumnus Award from Boston University School of Medicine in 2003 and was recognized with the “ECAS Outstanding Support Award” by the European Cardiac Arrhythmia Society in 2010 and 2011. Dr. Marcus also received the “Pioneer in Pacing and Electrophysiology Award” presented by the Heart Rhythm Society in 2011.  As well as on other numerous occasions, Dr. Marcus was an invited speaker on ACM at the American College of Cardiology meeting in Atlanta in March 2010 where over 30,000 cardiologists from all over the world attended. In the summer of 2011, Dr. Marcus traveled to Spain and China where he was invited to lecture at the European Society of Electrophysiology about the diagnosis of ACM and proposed new treatments to prevent arrhythmias.

Dr. Marcus retired from the Sarver Heart Center in July 2020 at the age of 92.

Dr. Jared Churko and Stem Cell Research at the University of Arizona

Dr. Jared Churko, Director of the University of Arizona iPSC Core and Assistant Professor in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, is focusing his research on the possibility that induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) research may identify the basic molecular mechanisms that cause ACM.  Specifically, his lab uses human induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPSC cells, to create cardiac cell types and develop tools for personalized medicine tailored to an individual patient. Currently, Dr. Churko’s main focus is studying ACM.  He has corrected ARVC mutations (PKP2) in iPSC cell lines and has been using these to study arrhythmogenesis and fatty-fibro infiltration.

iPSC cells are a type of stem cell (distinct from embryonic stem cells) that have been derived from a patient’s blood. After the blood sample is taken from the individual, it takes about 14 days to convert these blood cells into iPSCs. iPSCs can then be differentiated into any cell type of interest, like heart cells, and researchers use these heart cells to study patient specific disease mechanisms.

Another positive aspect of stem cell research is physicians can test new drugs outside of the patient. This eliminates the need for patients to take a lot of different drugs themselves to find the drug that works for them.

One way we can contribute to Dr. Churko’s stem cell research is to help spread awareness of ACM. Dr. Churko is also interested in obtaining blood samples from ACM patients and receiving a patient’s perspective which are also helpful to his research.

Research is underfunded.  Please consider making a donation to Dr. Churko’s very exciting and promising research at www.heart.arizona.edu.

The importance of ACM research

Since so little is known about ACM, there is much work to be done. During the time following the first detailed clinical description of this heart disorder in 1982, significant advances have been made in our understanding of all aspects of this disease. Ongoing research is critical to improving treatment and saving the lives of those affected by ACM. Many people aren’t aware that research depends upon funding. Competition for medical research funds is intense, and it can be difficult to receive governmental funding for a somewhat rare heart disease. There are insufficient funds available from public or institutional sources.

Some of the Sarver Heart Center’s ACM research accomplishments:

The ACM research program at the University of Arizona has been extremely productive with over 50 articles attributed to the NIH grant being published in peer reviewed journals. Perhaps the most important contribution so far has been to recommend a change in how doctors should evaluate patients suspected of the disease and how to interpret the tests. ACM can be difficult to diagnose and the diagnosis depends on proper interpretation of several tests. There is no single test that is sufficiently reliable to be certain of an ACM diagnosis.

The ACM research program at the Sarver Heart Center has recommended changes in the criteria for the diagnosis based on their vast experience of enrolling nearly 150 patients from over 10 enrolling centers in the U.S.

Other research goals at the University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center include a continuation of:

• The North American Registry of ACM for patients and their families
• Working toward the determination of the genetic background and molecular causes of ACM
• The development of a unique radiology software program that can detect the signs of ACM
• Offering patient support and information to physicians via telephone
• Detecting individuals with ACM early and eventually learn to prevent the disease or its manifestations

 

Why the ACM research program needs donations

The success of the ACM research program at the University of Arizona is directly related to the generosity of individual donors. Private, individual donors are critical in keeping ACM research alive on this often fatal disease. New clinical procedures, devices and medications are extending and saving lives, offering patients hope that was not available as much as a decade ago. Although knowledge of ACM has increased over the past 30 years, research on curative treatments are still in the preliminary stages.  When you support research, you are partnering with other private donors and/or entities and dedicated researchers in their battle against ACM. You can be a part of a team that assures that research goals and breakthroughs aren’t inhibited or delayed due to lack of funding.

Medical research benefits all of us!

To donate in support of ACM research, you can make a gift by check to:

University of Arizona Foundation
Reference: ID#20-10-0323 (Frank Marcus/Cardiology Fund)
P.O. Box 210109
Tucson, AZ  85731-0109 

OR ONLINE at www.heart.arizona.edu.

You may also email Dr. Jared Churko at jchurko@arizona.edu