Dr. Cush received his medical degree from St George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada, West Indies and completed his residency in internal medicine at Coney Island Hospital, New York City, NY where he was also Chief Resident. He went on to complete a rheumatology fellowship at The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX and Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas, TX.

Throughout his career, Dr Cush has held numerous academic positions including Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Professor of Medicine and Rheumatology at Baylor University Medical Center, Chief of Rheumatology at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, Director of Clinical Rheumatology for the Baylor Scott & White Research Institute, Dallas, TX and Professor of Medicine at St George’s University School of Medicine.

Dr. Cush’s early research focused on cellular immunology, translational research, and drug development of biologic and novel therapies. His clinical interests and expertise include rheumatoid arthritis, Still’s disease, spondyloarthritis, drug safety and clinical trials. Throughout, his career has focused on therapeutics, drug safety, medical education and digital online education. His expertise and research in rheumatology is chronicled in over 150 journal articles and numerous rheumatology textbook chapters, including the chapter on “The Approach to Articular and Musculoskeletal Disorders” in Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine (12th–20th edns). Dr. Cush has co-authored the medical textbooks Rheumatology: Diagnosis and Therapeutics (2nd edn, 2005), Rheumatoid Arthritis: Diagnosis and Treatment (4th edn, 2014) and the online textbook RheumaKnowledgy.com (2014).

Dr. Cush has been a pioneer in digital online education with the founding of a rheumatology focused website, RheumNow.com, where he is Executive Editor. RheumNow has become a leading educational platform rooted in multimedia dissemination of news, journal advances, patient care guidelines and regulatory changes, for the benefit of rheumatologists and those devoted to musculoskeletal medicine.

Dr. Cush has served on the Arthritis Advisory Committee of the US Food & Drug Administration, held numerous leadership and committee positions for the Arthritis Foundation and American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and been a Master of the ACR since 2021. He has held editorial positions for The Journal of Rheumatology and Seminars in Arthritis & Rheumatism, and is past editor of the ACR’s Hotline and Drug Safety Quarterly. He currently serves as Board Chairman of St George’s University School of Medicine.

Dr. Kavanaugh is a Professor of Medicine and Rheumatologist and Allergist/Immunologist. He earned his BS in biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA and his MD at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO. He completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in clinical immunology and allergy at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX. Dr. Kavanaugh also completed a rheumatology fellowship at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Dallas, TX. In 1990, he joined the faculty at University of Texas Southwestern before joining the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology at the University of California, San Diego, CA in 1999.

Dr. Kavanaugh has authored more than 600 publications. He is on the editorial boards of several journals and has served as peer reviewer for more than a dozen scientific journals. Dr. Kavanaugh is a Fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and the American College of Rheumatology. He has been a member of and chaired numerous committees in these organizations.

Dr. Kavanaugh’s main research interest has been in clinical research, particularly translational aspects of rheumatology research. This has included work delineating the immunopathophysiology of rheumatic diseases as well as defining changes associated with novel immunomodulatory therapies. Although his research focus has largely been rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, Dr. Kavanaugh has conducted many studies in other autoimmune conditions including systemic lupus erythematosus, ankylosing spondylitis and inflammatory bowel disease amongst others. His studies have also focused on novel imaging methods and clinical outcomes. Dr. Kavanaugh has helped create guidelines for the treatment and optimal care of patients with several rheumatic diseases. He is a founding member of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) and remains on its executive committee.