Fellowship Training Overview

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital offers a comprehensive fellowship program for advanced clinical and research training in pediatric hematology, oncology, bone marrow transplant and cellular therapies. Our program emphasizes hands-on experiential learning, a collaborative environment, and innovative approaches to care. Fellows will gain expertise in the clinical care of patients with complex hematologic, oncologic and immunologic diagnoses, as well as training in cutting-edge research.

Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute: The fellowship program is housed within the Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute (CBDI), consisting of four Divisions including: 

• Hematology: The Hematology Division includes internationally recognized leaders in the care of children and adolescents with red cell disorders, platelet disorders, bleeding disorders/thrombophilia, and vascular anomalies. The Hematology Division also directs two clinical subspecialty laboratories focused on cutting-edge diagnostics in hemostasis/thrombosis and red cell disorders. Fellows have the opportunity to develop an in-depth understanding of every aspect of classical hematology. Beyond a broad clinical exposure, fellows may be involved in research studies ranging from mechanistic discovery science to novel phase 1 clinical trials and gene therapy trials.
• Oncology: The Division of Oncology at Cincinnati Children’s is a large, national and international referral center for pediatric and young adult patients with cancer. Fellows will receive clinical mentoring from our internationally recognized faculty in leukemia/lymphoma, solid tumors and neuro-oncology. They will learn to direct patient care within a multidisciplinary environment and participate as primary providers in the full spectrum of care including initial diagnosis/work-up, treatment planning, ongoing care management, disease relapse and survivorship. Beyond traditional cytotoxic techniques, fellows will learn to incorporate advanced molecular testing in pursuit of precision medicine as well as how to involve patients in the clinical trials that are moving the field forward.
• Bone Marrow Transplantation and Immune Deficiency: The BMT division is internationally renowned and one of the largest in the country averaging 100 transplants a year. Fellows will receive in-depth training in transplanting malignancies, inborn errors of immunity, inborn errors of metabolism, hemoglobinopathies, and bone marrow failure. They will also be exposed to cutting edge treatments in cellular therapy and gene therapy.
• Experimental Hematology and Cancer Biology: The CBDI has one of the largest research programs devoted to pediatric hematology/oncology in the USA. This Division includes over 20 scientists and physician scientists focused on research covering every aspect of our fellowship, providing fellows the opportunity to learn discovery science and translational science amongst world experts.

Fellows are a part of a multidisciplinary team providing comprehensive care to children with blood disorders and cancer. This program offers exposure to advanced therapeutic techniques, research-driven approaches and a commitment to improving patients’ quality of life.

Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Curriculum

The Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center offers a comprehensive, progressive training experience. In the first year, fellows focus on core clinical rotations in hematology, oncology and bone marrow transplant, gaining foundational skills. The second and third years provide opportunities to continue to expand on clinical expertise while providing a significant amount of protected time to pursue academic research projects. In the third year, our fellows take on additional leadership roles within the fellowship program, giving them opportunities for education and mentoring. Throughout the program, fellows receive hands-on mentorship from faculty experts, experience multidisciplinary collaboration, and pursue scholarly activity.

Continuity Clinic

Each fellow is assigned a weekly clinic where they will follow primary patients in each specialty. Those patients will be followed by the fellow throughout the three years of training, with the goal of the fellow acting as the primary decision maker.

Night Float/Call

Overnight call is handled by our Night Float system. All overnight call is taken from home. In general, fellows will cover night float for 1-2 week blocks that are divided between all fellows. Additionally, first year fellows will cover a small number of 24-hour weekend shifts.

Research Training

Fellows are required to participate in ongoing academic research throughout fellowship and have significant protected time during the 2nd and 3rd year of fellowship to pursue an academic project under the mentorship of our excellent faculty. A wide spectrum of discovery (basic), translational, and clinical research opportunities are available. Fellows may pursue research in hematology, oncology, cellular therapies, interdisciplinary research being conducted in CBDI, or any number of multidisciplinary projects with investigators throughout the institution. Fellows seeking experience in clinical research also have the option of obtaining a Master of Science in Clinical and Translational Research through the University of Cincinnati.

We begin the process of finding fellows a primary research mentor and a mentoring team during December of the first year. The projects are rigorous, with the goal of publishing a first author paper. Fellows have the unique opportunity to pursue research in their areas of passion as second and third years across the spectrum of pediatric hematology/oncology. CCHMC is ranked amongst the top children’s hospitals for research, with one of the highest rates of NIH funding in the world. The CBDI houses one of the largest research programs within CCHMC and nearly all of CBDI’s ~100 faculty members are heavily engaged in research, including cutting-edge discovery science, translational science or clinical research studies.

Didactics

All fellows are given protected time for 1-hour educational sessions held every Monday and Thursday. Fellows also participate in multidisciplinary conferences such as Hematology Grand Rounds and various disease-specific tumor boards (leukemia/lymphoma, molecular, musculoskeletal tumors, liver tumors, neuro-oncology). During their second and third years, fellows are encouraged to take advantage of multiple research conferences both within the CBDI and the greater CCHMC/University of Cincinnati community.