NHF-Takeda Clinical Fellows

While an NHF-Shire Clinical Fellow, Dr. Hanny Al-Samkari will acquire a clinical and research expertise in hemophilia and rare bleeding disorders under the mentorship of Dr. Stacy Croteau at Boston Children’s Hospital and Drs. Eric Grabowski and Larissa Bornikova at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).  Dr. Al-Samkari received his medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis, where he was elected to AOA (Alpha Omega Alpha is a national medical honor society). He completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, where he served as Chief Medical Resident. He completed his fellowship in hematology and medical oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) combined program. During this fellowship, he strengthened his passion for classical hematology, and his research was focused on novel indications for thrombopoietin receptor agonists. Dr. Al-Samkari will lead the Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT) clinic at MGH under the mentorship of Dr. David Kuter.  He is also a dedicated medical educator, having worked as a member of the American Society of Hematology’s Benign Hematology Curriculum Initiative, and he has continued to be active in teaching medical students, residents and physician assistants.

Dr. Michael H. White is a pediatric hematology and oncology fellow at Emory University/CHOA. He earned his undergraduate degree in biology from Harding University and completed his medical degree at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. He went on to complete his general pediatrics residency training at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. He is currently pursuing a Master of Science degree in Clinical Research at Emory University and has received a TL1 research training grant (also known as a ‘Linked Training Award’), through the National Institutes of Health for his focus on multidisciplinary clinical and translational science. Dr. White is also the Chair-Elect of the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Research Society (HTRS) Fellows Network and serves as a board member for the International Health Care Foundation.

As an NHF-Shire clinical fellow, Dr. White will receive specialized clinical training in the Comprehensive Bleeding Disorders Clinic and Women and Girls’ Bleeding Clinic at CHOA under the mentorship of Drs. Robert Sidonio and Shannon Meeks. In addition to his clinical focus treating patients with disorders of hemostasis and thrombosis, Dr. White will pursue his clinical research characterizing the management and outcomes of heavy menstrual bleeding in adolescents with bleeding disorders and in those who are taking anticoagulant or antiplatelet medications.

Dr. Patricia Zerra is currently completing her pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship at Emory University/Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) and will begin an additional fellowship in Transfusion Medicine focusing on coagulation in July 2017. Dr. Zerra graduated from Connecticut College followed by two years of research at Boston Children’s Hospital. She received her M.D. from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and completed pediatrics residency at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital where she served as chief resident with an additional year practicing general pediatrics. As an NHF-Shire Clinical Fellow, Dr. Zerra will work under the mentorship of Dr. Robert Sidonio, Pediatric Director of the Emory/CHOA Hemophilia Treatment Center to focus on the clinical management of children with bleeding disorders. She will also continue her current research under the mentorship of Drs. Shannon Meeks and Sean Stowell, focusing on the immune response to FVIII in an effort to identify initiating immune events that can serve as targets to prevent FVIII inhibitor formation. Her goal is to serve as a pediatric hematologist and clinical/translational researcher focusing on the care of pediatric patients at risk for developing inhibitors.

Dr. Karen Zimowski is a pediatric hematology/oncology fellow at Emory University/Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA). Dr. Zimowski received her BS in Biochemistry from Clemson University and her MD from the Medical College of Georgia. She completed pediatric residency at Johns Hopkins University. As a NHF-Shire Clinical Fellow, she will receive clinical training under the guidance of Drs. Robert Sidonio and Shannon Meeks in the Comprehensive Bleeding Disorders Clinic at CHOA and Special Coagulation Laboratory at Emory University. In addition, she will continue her current research projects, investigating the structure-function relationships of both coagulation factor V and factor VIII. Dr. Zimowski aims to become an expert physician-scientist in the field of pediatric hemostasis and thrombosis. She seeks to apply the knowledge gained through laboratory analysis to the clinical setting and provide the highest level of medical care to patients with bleeding and coagulation disorders.

Dr. Jessica Garcia is currently a pediatric hematology/oncology fellow at the Medical College of Wisconsin/Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.  Her clinical mentor is Dr. Joan Gill, Director of the Comprehensive Center for Bleeding Disorders (CCBD) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Dr. Garcia’s primary research mentor will be Dr. Veronica Flood, with Dr. Bob Montgomery as her secondary research mentor.  Dr. Garcia attended medical school and completed her pediatric residency at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria/Children’s Hospital of Illinois.  During her pediatric residency, Dr. Garcia worked with Dr. de Alarcon studying the mechanisms underlying the thrombocytosis seen with iron deficiency anemia in an animal model.  As a NHF-Baxalta Clinical Fellow, Dr. Garcia will receive specialized training in hemostasis and thrombosis, available through the Comprehensive Center for Bleeding Disorders (CCBD) and Blood Research Institute (BRI).  Her research will focus on the biology of von Willebrand factor.

Dr. Yasmina Abajas is a clinical assistant professor in pediatric hematology/oncology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she also completed her subspecialty training in 2016.  A native of Miami, FL, she attended medical school at the University of Miami and completed her pediatrics residency at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. During her fellowship training, she focused on studying hemophilia B inhibitors in a humanized mouse model under the mentorship of Dr. Paul Monahan.  As a NHF- Baxalta Clinical Fellow, Dr. Abajas will work on transitioning her efforts from bench research to a translational/clinical research focus under the mentorship of Nigel Key, MB ChB, FRCP, section chief of hematology and director of the Hemophilia Treatment Center at UNC Chapel Hill.  Dr. Abajas will continue to focus on FIX inhibitors and evaluate whether or not a combined B and T cell immunosuppressive regimen helps with inhibitor eradication in affected hemophilia B patients.

At the time of his application, Dr. Pavan Bendapudi was finishing his third year of adult hematology/oncology training at the combined Dana Farber Cancer Institute- Massachusetts General Hospital (DFCI-MGH) fellowship program. After finishing his medical degree at Stanford University, he did his residency in internal medicine at MGH, where he developed a strong interest in bleeding and clotting disorders. This led him to complete an additional fellowship in blood banking and transfusion medicine through the Harvard Combined Transfusion Medicine Program, where he was the first graduate of his residency program to have pursued additional training in this area.

As a hematology fellow, Dr. Bendapudi provided care to patients at the hemostasis clinic at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and pursued additional research opportunities in the labs of Dr. Robert Flaumenhaft and Dr. Bruce Furie. Dr. Bendapudi received a Mentored Research Award from the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Research Society (HTRS) and will join the faculty at Massachusetts General Hospital as an instructor with an appointment in the Division of Hematology.  While a NHF-Baxalta Clinical Fellow, Dr. Bendapudi will participate in the Comprehensive Hemophilia Clinic at Children’s Hospital Boston, attending all clinical sessions and training under the mentorship of Dr. Ellis Neufeld.  Dr. Bendapudi will continue expanding his training, along with a focus on the transition from pediatric to adult hemophilia care.

Dr. Angela Weyand is a pediatric hematology/oncology fellow at The University of Michigan, Mott Children’s Hospital. She is a native of Kansas City, Kansas and a graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.  Dr. Weyand attended medical school at the University of Michigan and completed her pediatrics residency at the University of Washington/Seattle Children’s Hospital. As a NHF-Baxalta Clinical Fellow, she will receive dedicated clinical training in the care of patients with disorders of hemostasis, as well as continuing her current research projects investigating genetic modifiers of coagulation in a zebrafish model. Dr. Weyand will be seeing patients with hemophilia and other hemostatic disorders under the mentorship of Dr. Steven Pipe and Dr. Jordan Shavit, and Dr. Pipe will include her in the management and interpretation of test results in their special coagulation laboratory.  Dr. Weyand’s long term goals are to further the field of coagulation through translational research and to provide the highest level of comprehensive clinical care to patients with hemophilia and coagulation disorders.