Dr. Owhofasa Agbedia to Receive the 2021 ASH-CIBMTR-ASTCT Career Development Award

CHICAGO, June 22, 2022 (Newswire.com) - American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) is pleased to announce that Owhofasa Agbedia, MD, MPH, has been selected by the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the Center of International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR), and ASTCT to receive the ASH-CIBMTR-ASTCT Career Development Award. This new award is a part of the ASH Minority Hematology Fellow Award (MHFA) program, which supports early-career researchers from minority groups historically underrepresented in medicine. This new partnership award is exclusively for fellows pursuing careers in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and cellular therapy. 

As an ASH MHFA awardee, Dr. Agbedia will receive a total of $100,000 over a two- to three-year period to guarantee protected time for clinical or laboratory-based hematology research projects, to develop additional skills in the conduct of research, and generate preliminary data with guaranteed dual mentorship. He will also have the opportunity to attend the ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition, where he will present research findings at the Promoting Minorities in Hematology event.

Additionally, as part of this award, Dr. Agbedia will receive opportunities from ASTCT and CIBMTR. Dr. Agbedia will be enrolled in both the ASTCT Leadership Course and the ASTCT Clinical Research Training Course and will become a member of the ASTCT Committee on Diversity and Inclusion. Dr. Agbedia will have the opportunity to conduct a research project with CIBMTR faculty and be able to visit campuses associated with CIBMTR at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and the National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match in Minneapolis. The award also covers registration to the 2023 Tandem Meetings: Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Meetings of ASTCT and CIBMTR.

Dr. Agbedia is currently a fellow, Hematology/Oncology at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, and a graduate student at MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. Dr. Agbedia is interested in investigating an innovative cellular therapeutic option for the treatment of CD94-expressing NK/T-cell lymphoproliferative disorders.

"ASTCT is proud to partner with ASH and CIBMTR to expand representation in our field, while encouraging research that will make an impact on patient care. We recognize that a diverse and inclusive workforce leads to critical advancements, innovation and the elimination of health care disparities," said ASTCT President Brenda Sandmaier, MD, of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. 

The MHFA is one of six programs under ASH's Minority Recruitment Initiative, a series of programs committed to increasing the number of underrepresented minorities training in hematology-related fields and the number of minority hematologists with academic and research appointments.

The Career Development Award is also part of ASTCT's award expansion, which includes a New Investigator Award for Underrepresented Minorities and additional Travel Grants for the Tandem Meetings: Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Meetings of ASTCT and CIBMTR.

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About American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) 

ASTCT is an international professional membership association of more than 3,000 physicians, investigators, and other health care professionals from more than 45 countries. Our mission is dedicated to improving the application and success of blood and marrow transplantation and related cellular therapies. We strive to be the leading organization promoting research, education, and clinical practice in the field. For more information about ASTCT, visit www.astct.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASTCT.

Contact: Jennifer Kasowicz, ASTCT Director of Marketing, [email protected], 312-673-4970

Source: American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT)