SCCT Catalyst Award Supports CCTA Research on Menopause Hormone Therapy and Coronary Plaque
ARLINGTON, VA — The Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT) selected Ido Avivi, MD as the second recipient of the Chinnaiyan Catalyst Award for Women's Cardiovascular Health Research.
The award — established in 2025 by SCCT President Kavitha Chinnaiyan, MD, MSCCT and Arul Chinnaiyan, MD, PhD, with additional support from nine donors — recognizes research projects that highlight and improve gaps in our understanding of cardiac and vascular physiology, specifically in women, incorporating coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) imaging.
Dr. Avivi’s winning submission, “Beyond Calcium: Coronary Plaque Characterization in Postmenopausal Women on Hormone Replacement Therapy,” will use CCTA to characterize coronary plaque in postmenopausal women on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and evaluate associations with treatment duration and long-term cardiovascular outcomes.
According to Dr. Avivi, he and his team became interested in this topic after reading a New York Times article in late 2025 highlighting the growing interest in testosterone-based treatments for menopausal women. His team then published research in JACC a few short months later confirming this boom and finding that testosterone prescriptions for women in the U.S. increased almost three-fold in the past decade and 80% since last year in mid-life women.
He explained that while menopause hormone therapies continue to grow in popularity, there is limited understanding of their cardiovascular effects, particularly regarding heart plaque.
As cardiologists, Dr. Avivi and his team plan to use advanced CT technology to study the impact of hormonal therapies on women’s heart health during menopause, filling a gap in current medical knowledge.
“The menopause transition is a critical window for women's heart health, but the assessment of coronary disease and menopause hormonal therapy has focused only on coronary artery calcium, a marker of late-stage disease,” he said. “With this award, our team at UC San Diego, under the mentorship of Dr. Ori Ben-Yehuda, will use coronary CT angiography to study how menopause and its treatments shape the onset and progression of atherosclerosis.”
The judging panel selected Dr. Avivi’s submission based on the strong observational study design and, given the widespread use of HRT among menopausal women and persistent under-recognition of cardiovascular disease in women, its potential to offer meaningful population health implications.
Dr. Avivi, who is new to the SCCT community as a research fellow at University of California San Diego, plans for multiple tiers of trials, including a retrospective study using existing CT data that could potentially yield results for presentation at the 2027 SCCT annual scientific meeting, which will be held in Washington, DC July 8-11.
He said that, while it's a clinically pressing question, support for such early-stage work is often hard to find, and that the SCCT Chinnaiyan Catalyst Award provides not only seed funding for the program's first steps, but recognition and visibility for this important question in women's health.
"As someone early in building a research career in prevention, it has also given me an invaluable introduction to the SCCT community, with all the collaborations and opportunities that come with it," he said.
SCCT will present the award to Dr. Avivi at the opening session of the SCCT Annual Scientific Meeting (SCCT2026), which takes place at 8:00am PT on Friday, July 10 at the Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center in Chula Vista, Calif.
Thanks to Drs. Chinnaiyan and its donors — Cristina Fuss, MD, PhD, FSCCT; Anjali Chelliah, MD, FSCCT; Maros Ferencik, MD, PhD, MSCCT; Jill Jacobs, MD, MS-HQSM, FSCCT; Omar Khalique, MD, FSCCT; Ronen Rubinshtein, MD, FSCCT; Ahmad Slim, MD, FSCCT and Eric Williamson, MD, MSCCT — the Chinnaiyan Catalyst Award recipient receives a $7,500 prize, complimentary SCCT2026 registration, travel reimbursement of up to $1,500, three nights’ accommodation and a plaque.
Dr. Avivi will also present an on-demand webcast discussing his project.
SCCT will also provide a travel grant of $2,500 to support Dr. Avivi’s attendance at a future SCCT ASM to present a poster or talk based on a submitted abstract of early results.
About the Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography
Founded in 2005, the Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT) is the international professional society devoted to improving health outcomes through effective use of cardiovascular computed tomography (CCT). SCCT is a community of physicians, scientists and technologists from over 100 countries advocating for access, research, education and clinical excellence in the use of CCT. For more information, please visit https://scct.org.
About the 21st Annual Scientific Meeting of SCCT (SCCT2026)
SCCT2026 – the preeminent meeting focused on cardiovascular CT – will be held July 9 - 12, 2026 in San Diego, California. The SCCT Annual Scientific Meeting is designed to engage physicians, trainees, technologists and healthcare professionals in a complete overview of the cardiovascular CT field. Planned sessions are targeted for all levels, from new practitioners to experienced providers. Sessions range from general overviews to state-of-the-art research and expert discussions. For more information, please visit https://scct.org/SCCT2026.
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