12th Annual James J. Lane, Jr., M.D. Lecture and Reception

The James J. Lane, Jr., MD Endowed Lecture Series was established to honor Dr. Lane’s contributions to the field of clinical rheumatology. Dr. Lane was the first fellowship trainee in the Division of Arthritis at the UW from 1958 to 1959. Each year on a Thursday in March, a lecture is held in honor of Dr. Lane as part of the Department of Medicine’s Grand Rounds program.   This year, Dr. Betty Diamond presented the 12th Lane Lecture on March 29th for Medicine Grand Rounds. Her topic was entitled: Antibodies and the Brain: Lessons from Autoimmunity. She also presented a lecture on March 30th with the topic entitled: SLE Alleles That Affect B Cell Function.   Click here to view photos of the reception.

December 2011 Newsletter now available

The December 2011 Newsletter is now available online!   If you would like to read more on our featured faculty member, Dr. Jeff Ledbetter, please click here to read Lara Foote's biography. Thank you.

Grand Rounds to be Archived

Starting on October 18th, the Grand Rounds lectures will be recorded and archived with the PowerPoint presentation.To view our current Grand Rounds schedule, click here.   Click here to view the most current recording.

Rheumatology Researchers to Join South Lake Union 3 in 2013

On July 6th, the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of Phase 3 took place at UW Medicine South Lake Union (SLU). This building will house researcher investigators in Rheumatology, Vision Sciences, Immunology, Kidney research, and Infectious Diseases. The first building of Phase 3 will be an 183,000 square foot laboratory building and will be ready for occupation in Spring, 2013.         * Click to enlarge   In addition to Elkon (Rheumatology), Van Voorhis (Allergy and Infectious Diseases), Van Gelder (Vision Sciences) and Goverman (Immunology) (see photograph), the Chair of the Department of Medicine, Dr. William Bremner, the CEO and Dean of the School of Medicine, Dr. Paul Ramsey, the new UW President, Dr. Michael Young and the Seattle Mayor, Mike McGinn were in attendance.   "This third phase of UW Medicine's expansion at South Lake Union will allow us to bring together additional researchers from critically important areas and build upon the collaborative work of these scientific leaders in state-of-the-art facilities," said Dr. Paul Ramsey. "The new space will present tremendous opportunities for scientists across multiple research disciplines."

New Job Positions

One new position has been posted at the University of Washington for a Clinician / Educator. Two job positions are still available at the VA for a Section Head and Staff Rheumatologist.   Click here to view our flyers for more details.

Dr. Jeffrey Ledbetter Receives Herndon & Esther Maury Professorship in RA

Jerry and Esther Maury established the Herndon (Jerry) and Esther Maury Professorship in Rheumatoid Arthritis at UW Medicine in 2005 with a gift made through their estate. This endowment was created to recruit and retain doctors and scientists researching new treatments for Rheumatoid Arthritis, a disease that has touched their family. Considering his notable achievements as a scientist dedicated to translational medicine, Dr. Jeffrey Ledbetter, PhD is a fitting recipient of the Herndon and Esther Maury Endowed Professorship in Rheumatoid Arthritis. Dr. Ledbetter joined the Division of Rheumatology in 2007. Prior to that, he worked in the biotechnology industry and was chief scientific officer of a number of startup companies in Seattle.   Dr. Ledbetter has made numerous contributions to the basic understanding and the therapeutic application of immune based therapies. These efforts began more than 20 years ago as inventor of biologics such as Abatacept (Orencia), a therapy that is now commonly used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. He has continued to apply his skills to the application of B cell based therapies as well as other immune strategies in the Division of Rheumatology over the last three years.   View photos from his reception here.