Dr. Melissa A. Cunningham

Dr. Rick Silver is a professor of medicine and pediatrics and has served as director of the Division of Rheumatology and Immunology since 1995. In 2007, he was named distinguished university professor, the highest academic rank bestowed at MUSC. The division has seen remarkable growth in all facets, including extramural research funding, clinical services, and fellowship training during his tenure as division director. Under his direction, the Division of Rheumatology has been consistently ranked among the top 20 programs by U.S. News and World Report.Dr. Silver's research interests center on scleroderma and, in particular, scleroderma lung disease, now a major cause of death among patients with scleroderma. He and his colleagues were the first to utilize bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) to characterize scleroderma lung disease. He played an instrumental role in the design and development of the Scleroderma Lung Study I and II. Dr. Silver helped to initiate and develop MUSC's pulmonary hypertension center and sarcoidosis center. Dr. Silver serves as associate director of a multidisciplinary clinical research center (MCRC) for the study of rheumatic diseases in African-Americans funded by NIAMS. Dr. Silver's clinical interests include scleroderma and scleroderma-related conditions, as well as childhood rheumatic diseases. MUSC Health is one of the world's leaders in clinical care and investigation of systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) and scleroderma-like conditions, e.g. eosinophilic fasciitis and the eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome. MUSC Health also serves as the state of South Carolina's only referral center for childhood rheumatic diseases. Dr. Silver has led the efforts to coordinate care for children in South Carolina with rheumatic diseases for the past 32 years,FALSE, and he continues to provide clinical care and conduct clinical research with Dr. Tasha Ruth, whose primary appointment is in the Department of Pediatrics. Dr. Silver is highly rated in 16 conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Scleroderma, Systemic Sclerosis (SSc), Scleroma, and Dermatomyositis.

Faye Hant, DO, MSCR, specializes in Rheumatology and is located in Charleston, SC. Dr. Hant is highly rated in 20 conditions, according to our data. Her top areas of expertise are Scleroderma, Systemic Sclerosis (SSc), Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus (CLE), and Scleroma.

Dr. Diane Kamen is an assistant professor of medicine in the division of rheumatology. She completed her undergraduate training at Northwestern University. She graduated from the University of Kansas School of Medicine in 1999 and completed her internal medicine residency and a three-year rheumatology fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina in June 2005. In 2004, she completed a two-year Master of Science in Clinical Research program, funded through an NIH K30 clinical research curriculum award. She joined the faculty in July 2005. Dr. Kamen has had a longstanding interest in the clinical treatment of and research in understanding the natural history of autoimmune disorders. Her clinical and research interests remain focused on systemic lupus erythematosus and she is an active member of the M.U.S.C.L.E. Research Group. She has headed several large observational investigations, including studies of the prevalence, characteristics, and genetics of SLE within the Sea Island African American Gullah population (the S.L.E.I.G.H. Study) and has a K23 award from the NIH to investigate the role of vitamin D in lupus under the mentorship of Dr. Gilkeson. She also has an R21 award from the NIH to explore potential environmental triggers of autoimmunity. She is involved in multiple interventional clinical trials in lupus, both industry-sponsored and investigator-initiated. She serves as the clinical director for the lupus clinical trials consortium at MUSC. Dr. Kamen promotes clinical research at a national level as chair of the southern section American Federation for Medical Research, a member of the Lupus Foundation of America medical-scientific advisory council, and on the international level as a member of the Systemic Lupus Collaborating Clinics (SLICC).Dr. Kamen's career goals include gaining insight into the pathogenic mechanisms responsible for autoimmune diseases and improving the quality of life for patients. Dr. Kamen is highly rated in 5 conditions, according to our data. Her top areas of expertise are Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), Lupus Nephritis, Arthritis, and Vitamin D Deficiency.