$3.25M Donation Made Toward UC San Diego Heart Disease Research

SAN DIEGO, CA — A $3.25 million gift was announced Friday to support heart disease research through the creation of a cardiomyopathy center at the University of California, San Diego.

The donation from Steven M. Strauss and Lise N. Wilson will be added to $1.75 million the university will raise, with the total $5 million pledge establishing a research center geared toward creating novel treatment options that will slow or halt the progression of heart disease.

The Steven M. Strauss and Lise N. Wilson Center for Cardiomyopathy will be the first cardiomyopathy center in San Diego, according to a statement from UCSD. The center will operate from UC San Diego School of Medicine and within the Cardiovascular Institute at UC San Diego Health.

According to UCSD, cardiomyopathy affects around 1 in 500 people in the U.S. and though treatment is available, there is no cure and patients often require heart transplants.

Dr. Eric Adler, a professor of medicine at UCSD School of Medicine and medical director of the heart transplant program and mechanical circulatory support at UC San Diego Health, said

"Unfortunately, we cannot solve this problem with our current medications or cardiac transplant, and new tools are desperately needed to identify the disease and develop therapies."

"This gift will help ensure the long-term success of our center and its research, as well as the creation of innovative treatments led by a team committed to excellence in cardiomyopathy care so we can transform this field of medicine," he added.

Strauss, an attorney, called UC San Diego "a leader in the treatment of cardiovascular disease" and said he and his wife "felt it was important to establish a cardiomyopathy center at UC San Diego to support Dr. Adler's research and redefine the treatment for this little known, and potentially deadly, heart disease."

— City News Service