Pediatric Hematology Research Training Program

The primary objective of the Pediatric Hematology Research Training Program has been to train individuals – mostly pediatric hematology/oncology fellows – for academic or industrial careers in pediatric-related, benign hematology. Pediatric benign hematology is a highly underserved area of research. Our Division, supported by this T32, has excelled at attracting, training, and retaining young, talented individuals to this field who have risen to leadership roles in pediatric benign hematology research. In this renewal, we propose to expand the scope of our T32, increasing our slots from 4 to 6 postdoctoral slots per year to pursue a new, more ambitious vision. The Specific Aims of this renewal are as follows: (1) This T32 renewal will offer a wide range of research training opportunities of particular import to pediatrics in hemoglobinopathies and other anemias, hemostasis/ thrombosis, megakaryocyte/platelet biology, transfusion medicine, stem cell development, bone marrow failure, and now, vasculogenesis. (2) It will support a wide pool of potential trainees. Besides the pediatric hematology/oncology fellows pool we will include: i. non-hematology pediatric fellows interested in pursuing research in benign hematology, and ii. candidates from a proposed sickle cell disease (SCD) subspecialty training program offering state-of-the-art research training related to SCD. (3) Training will continue to involve a “team” approach of a primary mentor plus advisory faculty with key ancillary skills (e.g., bioinformatics or gene therapy). (4) The T32 infrastructure will continue to carefully monitor individual trainee progress and oversee mentorship towards reaching the appropriate next career milestones using a novel “stepwise oversight” committee designed to transition pediatric hematology/oncology fellows from their clinical year(s) to their early assistant professor years. (5) Our program will continue to emphasize acquisition of skills critical for successful academic careers. Preparation of manuscripts, presentations and grant submissions, detailed bioethical training, laboratory or investigator leadership skills, and specific training in optimizing authentication of key reagents, in designing the laboratory and/or clinical study, and in rigorous data analysis. The training faculty is comprised of a closely-knit group of productive, well-funded, pediatric benign hematology physicians and scientists with strong records as mentors, supplemented by additional trainers that bring in skills key for the success of our trainees. Our program has been successful in the research training of highly talented individuals, and this effort to train such strong candidates remains a priority. Despite a national trend away from subspecialty research training in pediatrics, this T32 mechanism has enabled our Program to train outstanding candidates for academic careers to become national and international leaders in many areas of benign pediatric hematology. We believe that the expanded vision we propose for our T32 renewal shows the program’s continued vigor, and its ability to evolve and maintain relevance in our field of benign pediatric hematology.