Bio:

Dr. Deane is currently a Rheumatologist and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado Denver. The main focus of his research on ‘Preclinical Rheumatoid Arthritis’ (Preclinical RA). Preclinical RA can be defined as the period of time in the development of RA before the onset of the first inflamed joint. Dr. Deane’s studies in Preclinical RA involve natural history studies of individuals at high-risk for future RA. These include family studies as well as studies of individuals identified with blood-based high-risk RA-related biomarkers identified through large-scale screening of general populations. In particular, Dr. Deane is Principal Investigator of the first RA prevention study in the USA. This study is called ‘StopRA’ and is funded by the NIH. It involves screening approximately 20,000 individuals to identify those with high-risk blood-based biomarkers for RA in absence of joint inflammation at baseline. These high-risk individuals are then further targeted with a preventive intervention. Dr. Deane also has a research interest in the early events that trigger RA-related autoimmunity. These studies include investigating processes in humans that may trigger early autoimmunity at mucosal surfaces in the lung, the gums, and elsewhere. The overall goal of Dr. Deane’s research is to add prevention as an actionable approach for RA as well as other autoimmune diseases.