Texas Heart Institute Medal and the Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement in Cardiovascular Diseases

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Ray C. Fish (1902–1962) was a leading figure in Houston's natural gas industry and a philanthropist. He believed in the American dream of “opportunity for success.” The Ray C. Fish Foundation was established so that others might be encouraged to broaden man's self-knowledge and to keep the American dream alive. After its founder's death from heart disease, the Fish Foundation granted $5 million to make the Texas Heart Institute a reality. For this reason, the Institute's highest professional award is given in honor of this extraordinary man. The award recognizes those whose innovations have made significant contributions to cardiovascular medicine and surgery.

The first Texas Heart Institute Medal and Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement in Cardiovascular Diseases were presented in 1972 to Dr. Norman Shumway. Since 1972, 33 other highly deserving recipients have been so honored by the Institute. The complete Roll of Recipients appears on the next page.

Prof. Alain G. Cribier, MD, FACC

The 2013 Fish Award recipient is Alain G. Cribier, for his outstanding contributions to interventional cardiology. Prof. Cribier was for 20 years chief of cardiology at Charles Nicolle Hospital, University of Rouen, France. Since 2011, he has served as professor emeritus and as a medical consultant. He is a graduate of the University of Paris, where he decided to specialize in cardiology. After a fellowship at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, he joined the department of cardiology at Charles Nicolle Hospital, where he took charge of the interventional cardiology unit.

Prof. Cribier is most widely recognized for having performed the first balloon dilation of the aortic valve for the treatment of calcific aortic stenosis (1985) and, after 10 years of research, the first implantation of an aortic valve prosthesis using cardiac catheterization (2002). This last innovation has opened a revolutionary, and less invasive, way of treating aortic stenosis in patients at high risk for conventional surgery. Greatly criticized during its early phase, the procedure is today recognized as a breakthrough, with a durable effect on medical practice.

Another Cribier achievement has been the development of a new technique for percutaneous dilation of the mitral valve with a metallic commissurotomy device, which improves the cost-efficacy of treating mitral stenosis in developing countries, where the disease is endemic.

In 2012, Prof. Cribier received the most recognized French national distinction: the Legion of Honor.

Roll of Recipients of the Texas Heart Institute Medal and the Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement in Cardiovascular Diseases

• 1972

• Norman E. Shumway

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart Transplantation)

• 1973

• F. Mason Sones, Jr.

  Cardiology (Coronary Angiography)

• 1974

• Eugene E. Braunwald

  Physiology (Myocardial Preservation)

• 1975

• Willem J. Kolff

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Artificial Organs)

• 1976

• Harvey Feigenbaum

  Cardiology (Echocardiography)

• 1977

• John W. Kirklin

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart-Lung Machines)

• 1978

• Bernard Lown

  Cardiology (Cardiac Arrhythmias)

• 1979

• John J. Gallagher and William C. Sealy (co-recipients)

  Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Pre-Excitation)

• 1980

• W. Proctor Harvey

  Cardiology (Clinical Practice and Teaching)

• 1981

• Paul M. Zoll

  Cardiology (Pacemaking)

• 1983

• Andreas R. Grüntzig

  Cardiology (Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty)

• 1984

• Hein J.J. Wellens and Douglas P. Zipes (co-recipients)

  Cardiology (Diagnosis and Management of Pediatric Cardiac Arrhythmias)

• 1985

• Denton A. Cooley

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease, Aneurysms of the Aorta, and Implantation of the Artificial Heart)

• 1986

• William J. Rashkind

  Pediatric Cardiology (Nonsurgical Treatment of Congenital Heart Disease)

• 1987

• Dwight E. Harken

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Intracardiac Surgery)

• 1988

• J. Willis Hurst

  Cardiology (Writing and Teaching)

• 1989

• Robert J. Hall

  Cardiology (Clinical Practice and Teaching)

• 1990

• Sol Sherry

  Cardiology (Thrombolytic Therapy)

• 1992

• Arthur S. Keats

  Cardiovascular Anesthesiology

• 1997

• Aldo R. Castañeda

  Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery

• 1997

• Julio C. Palmaz

  Radiology (Endovascular Stents)

• 1998

• Magdi Yacoub

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart-Lung Transplantation)

• 1999

• Thomas J. Fogarty

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Medical and Surgical Devices)

• 2004

• James L. Cox

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Surgery for Atrial Fibrillation)

• 2004

• Stephen Westaby

  Cardiovascular Surgery (First Clinical Trial of Axial-Flow Devices for Destination Therapy and Significant Contributions to the Surgical Literature)

• 2007

• Charles E. Mullins

  Pediatric Cardiology (Teaching and Pioneering Work in Interventional Techniques for Congenital Heart Disease)

• 2008

• O.H. Frazier

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Heart Transplantation and Research and Development of the Left Ventricular Assist Device)

• 2009

• James T. Willerson

  Cardiology (Pioneering Work in Unstable Atherosclerotic Plaques, Acute Coronary Syndromes, and Cardiac Stem Cells)

• 2010

• Charles D. Fraser, Jr.

  Cardiovascular Surgery (Development of a Program Known for Its Effectiveness in Correcting Congenital Cardiovascular Disease in Children)

• 2011

• Patrick W. Serruys

  Interventional Cardiology (Major Contributions to Interventional Cardiology, Including Those to the Development of Both Bare-Metal and Drug-Eluting Stents)

• 2012

• George J. Reul

  Cardiac and Vascular Surgery (Development of an Accredited Vascular Lab at SLEH; Leader in Quality Measures)

• 2013

• Alain G. Cribier

  Interventional Cardiology (First Balloon Dilation of Aortic Valve for Calcific Aortic Stenosis, 1985; and First Implantation of a Prosthetic Aortic Valve via Cardiac Catheterization, 2002)