The UNC Core Center for Clinical Research (CCCR) recently selected the first two pilot grant funding awardees for 2025. We are excited to announce that Dr. Astia Allenzara, Assistant Professor of Medicine, and Dr. Aaron Smith, First Year Rheumatology Fellow, both in the UNC Division of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, have been chosen to receive pilot grant funding for their proposed projects.
Dr. Allenzara’s project aims to assess time to idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) diagnosis and treatment from patients’ initial UNC specialist visit. This project will help generate preliminary data for future work to identify gaps in IIM identification and care. Dr. Allenzara noted that the pilot grant funding will be essential for accessing statistical expertise support from Carolina Alvarez, a biostatistician in the UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center.
Dr. Smith’s project will utilize data extraction from the electronic medical record to better understand acceptability, tolerability and treatment response to bupropion therapy in patients prescribed bupropion for lupus-associated fatigue. Biostatistical support from the CCCR Methodology Core and Dr. Becki Cleveland will also be a vital resource for Dr. Smith’s project, in addition to mentorship, resources and project coordination from the Sheikh Research Team.
Pilot grant applications will continue to be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. The number of awards will depend on available pilot grant funding and CCCR priorities. If you are interested in learning more about this funding opportunity and/or applying, please visit the UNC CCCR Pilot Grant Funding website.