A Message from G-CAN Directors
December 2025
Dear G-CAN Members and Associates,
As G-CAN approaches its 12th year, we reflect on a period of sustained
growth and achievement. Our membership now comprises nearly 350
professionals from over 30 countries, representing a broad spectrum of
expertise in rheumatology and related fields. Our award initiatives
continue to honor outstanding contributions; this marks the second year of
the Jr. Faculty Award — generously sponsored by SOBI — which provides grant
support for early career researchers, and the seventh awarding of the Gold
Medal Award, which recognizes groundbreaking research achievement and
mentoring in the field, as well as high-level engagement and service to
G-CAN.
Our society journal GUCDD, now in its third year, has quickly become an
influential publication, illustrating the progress and impact of our
organization within the scientific sphere. In 2026, the journal is poised
to receive a notable impact factor.
The success of our 11th Annual Meeting was unmatched, and preparations are
already underway for next year’s event, scheduled for November 4-5 in
Orlando, Florida, USA. G-CAN remains a robust and forward-looking
organization with promising prospects ahead.
We extend our best wishes for the holiday season and the coming new year.
Sincerely,
Robert Terkeltaub, MD, President
Hyon Choi, MD, DrPH, Vice President and Treasurer
Annual Meeting Update
An international audience of over 150 clinical and basic transnational
researchers and industry professionals gathered in Chicago and via live
stream online for the 11th Annual G-CAN Research Symposium on October 22-23
to exchange insights and recent developments in gout and crystal-associated
diseases. The two-day program featured four “Year in Review” presentations
covering both clinical and basic research on hyperuricemia, gout, and
calcific crystal arthropathy. In addition, special sessions addressed
topics that included emerging inflammation targets in crystal-induced
arthritis, distinguished award lectures, and a combined plenary Gout and
CPPD Workshop.
After a lively debate between Nicola Dalbeth and Thomas Bardin as to
whether the standard serum urate target in gout should be less than 5 mg/dL
or less than 6 mg/dL for the average patient, the audience voted
overwhelmingly to keep the standard at <6 mg/dL.
The Early Career Investigator Program demonstrated continued growth, with
24 high-quality abstracts selected for oral presentation. These
contributions covered a diverse range of subjects within the field and
represented perspectives from around the world. The accepted abstracts and
some of the “Year in Review” presentations will be published in the
upcoming issue of Gout, Urate, and Crystal Deposition Disease (GUCDD),
G-CAN’s official online journal.
The symposium wrapped up with a panel discussion titled “Past, Present, and
Future in Diagnosing Crystal Arthropathy,” led by Sara Tedeschi and
Georgios Filippou, with special guest Dominyka Kaušaitė joining remotely
from Lithuania.
The full meeting is available for viewing on the symposium website
(login required with registration credentials) until January 31.
Thereafter, the “Year in Review” lectures will be accessible on the
Please save the date for the 12th Annual Meeting, scheduled to take place
in Orlando, Florida, on November 4-5, 2026. Additional information will be
provided as planning progresses in early 2026.
G-CAN Leadership Announces 2026 Gold Medal Award
G-CAN leadership is pleased to announce the winner of the 2026 Gold Medal
Award, Lisa Stamp, MBChB, FRACP, PhD, Dip Mus, FRSNZ. Dr. Stamp, a
rheumatologist and Professor of Medicine at the University of Otago,
Christchurch, and Health New Zealand Waitaha, has been an active member of
G-CAN since inception, taking leadership roles in multiple key G-CAN
initiatives, including the G-CAN White Paper on gout and hyperuricemia
management in CKD. In 2024, she was appointed to the G-CAN Advisory Board.
This is only the seventh such award by the Society in our 12 years of
existence, reflecting that it is the highest honor G-CAN bestows on
investigators in the field. The 2026 award recognizes Dr. Stamp’s driving
role in landmark and prolific published research in the field, her
commitment and achievements in mentoring, and her remarkable involvement
and service to G-CAN in the relatively short and continuously evolving
history of the Society.
GUCDD Accepted for Coverage in ICI Journals Master List
MDPI, the publisher of Gout, Urate, and Crystal Deposition Disease
(GUCDD) recently announced that GUCDD has been accepted into the ICI
Journals Master List for 2024, receiving an Index Copernicus Value (ICV)
2024 of 96.14. This index is valid for one year and reflects the level of
the journal’s development and its impact on the world of science.
With a steadily increasing number of quality submissions, and a current
CiteScore of 3.8 (more than doubled since April 2025) the journal’s
reputation in the field continues to grow. It is currently in Q3 in the
category Medicine and Q4 in the category Rheumatology. Predicted for next
year according to the current CiteScore is Q2 in both categories and a
possible IF (Impact Factor) expected to be between 4-5.
More information and instructions for article submission can be found on
the journal’s website, https://www.mdpi.com/journal/gucdd.
Applications Now Being Accepted for the 2026 GUCDD Best PhD Thesis Award
Eligible candidates may now apply for the 2026 GUCDD Best PhD Thesis Award.
Launched in 2024, the award is presented annually to recognize young
scholars who are judged to have completed the most outstanding PhD thesis
in the field of gout, urate, and crystal deposition disease, and encourage
the continuation of their outstanding work and further contribution to
their field. The application process for this award is open from November
to May every year and winners are announced in July.
To be eligible, candidates must be a recently qualified PhD who has
produced an excellent thesis that advances research in the field of gout,
urate and crystal deposition disease. The thesis must be their original
work and have been defended in 2025.
The award recipient will receive a bonus of 1000 Swiss Francs (CHF), a
certificate, and a voucher to waive the Article Processing Charges (APCs)
for one submission in GUCDD (subject to peer review) — valid for one year.
Last year’s winner, Tom Niessink, received the award for his thesis
which primarily focused on the accuracy of Raman spectroscopy as a
diagnostic tool for gout.
Application deadline: 31 May 2026 · Winner announcement: 31 July 2026.
Managing Gout in Dialysis Survey
Practicing rheumatologists, nephrologists and renal nurse practitioners are
invited to participate in an interview format survey to study health
practitioners’ views, experiences, and practices when managing gout in a
patient with gout and kidney failure initiated on dialysis. The “Managing
Gout in Dialysis: Insights from Health Practitioners,” survey is being
conducted by researchers from the University of Sydney. Participation is
entirely voluntary, and all responses will be kept confidential. This study
has been approved by the University of Sydney human research ethics
(2025/HE000499). For more information and to participate in the study,