Academic Training in Hematology

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is a resubmission of a competitive renewal application for a PHS Institutional National Service Award (T32 HL66992) at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA to prepare post-doctoral fellows for an academic career in Hematology. This award was initiated in July, 2002, and supports 4 fellowship slots in years 2 and 3 of Hematology/Medical Oncology training. The Program Director is Victor Marder, MD, and the Associate Program Director is Donald Kohn, MD. In keeping with the NHLBI mission for training fellows in non-malignant hematology, we have made significant changes in our program regarding leadership, research foci, and selection of and funding of fellows for their research years of training. Of note are 1) the appointment of a pediatric hematology fellow who will study gene transplantation in sickle cell disease, 2) the elimination of an existing research focus in Leukemia, and 3) re-organization of Training Grant leadership to reflect our focus on non-malignant hematology. Since 2002, 22 fellows have completed their fellowship at UCLA, 15 of which (68%) are actively involved in research, 12 (55%) as full-time faculty at a University or Medical Center or in a full-time research position in industry, and 3 with active clinical research programs as part of their practice, including 2 who have voluntary university appointments. In the last 3 years (2010-2012), 7 of 8 graduates (87.5%) entered full- or part-time university or industry positions of research. All fellows entering the program are Training Grant Eligible (TGE). The faculty consists of 31 academic scientists and physicians, 89% of whom have NIH grant funding, grouped into 3 research foci, Hematopoiesis and Stem Cell Biology (Don Kohn, MD, Director), Lymphocyte Biology (John Timmerman, MD, Director) and Coagulation and Vascular Biology (Victor Marder, MD, Director). Interaction with other training programs in complementary disciplines, notably those in the Broad Stem Cell Research Center, the T32 Training Grant in Developmental Hematology, and the NCI T32 Training Grant in Medical Oncology, emphasizes the resources available to meet our mission of basic and translational research careers. A core curriculum is offered to all fellows, including a "Clinical Research Course", which covers subjects on research design and analysis, ethics, regulatory issues, grant preparation and responsible conduct of research. Fellows are encouraged to obtain an advanced degree as part of the STAR program, and 2 have obtained the Master's degree and 2 a PhD degree. Formal review of the mentor's effectiveness and the fellow's achievements are prepared by the Steering Committee, made up of the 3 Focus Directors, the PI of the Division Oncology Training Grant (Antoni Ribas, MD, PhD), and the Director of the Division Fellowship Training Program (Arash Naeim, MD, PhD). Three research retreats are held each year, fall retreats at which first year research proposals are proposed and second year progress reports are reviewed, and a spring retreat for final reports of graduating fellows. We are proud of our success in training underrepresented Minority candidates, 3 of 13 (23%) since 2007 being Hispanic or African-American.