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UP FRONT ASH Directions ASH Expands Global Initiative With Research Award for Hematologists Outside North America The American Society of Hematology (ASH) Global Research Award was established in 2018 as part of the Society’s expanding global initiative to support the study of hematology and improve the quality of care outside of North America. The first eight winners, representing seven countries, were honored for their work spanning the full spectrum of hematology, including projects focused on reducing the incidence of stroke in children with sickle cell dis- ease in Africa, developing a chimeric antigen receptor T-cell platform for low- and middle-income countries, and investigating targeted therapy to stimulate red blood cell development. They will receive funding for research or training, including training in the conduct of clinical trials. “As a young female physician-scientist, the recognition this award brings has opened doors and given me a voice. I now have the opportunity to directly advocate on behalf of my patients and those throughout the country.” –FABIOLA VALVERT, MD Guatemala “The ASH Global Research Award introduced me to the hematology society in Turkey, thereby allowing me to establish stable and constructive scientific networks with most major hematology centers and hematologists nationwide.” –CAN KÜÇÜK, PhD Turkey 8 ASH Clinical News “The ASH Global Research Award identifies talented hematologists who are just starting their careers after completing their training and gives them the tools to succeed right where they are,” said 2018 ASH President Alexis Thompson, MD, MPH, of the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. “In doing so, we aim to support future leaders, increase capacity in low- and middle-resource countries, and continue to nurture hematology collaboration across borders.” The 2018 ASH Global Research Award recipients are: Emmanuela Ambrose, MD Bugando Medical Centre Mwanza, Tanzania Alice Cheung, PhD Singapore General Hospital Bukit Merah, Singapore Paolo Gallipoli, MD, PhD University of Cambridge Cambridge, United Kingdom Renato Luiz Guerino Cunha, MD, PhD Medical School of Ribeirão Preto of São Paulo University Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil Can Küçük, PhD Dokuz Eylül University and İzmir Biomedicine and Genome Center İzmir, Turkey Antonella Nai, PhD Ospedale San Raffaele Milan, Italy Siana Nkya, PhD Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Cyntia Fabiola Valvert Gamboa, MD Liga Nacional contra el Cáncer e Instituto de Cancerología de Guatemala Guatemala, Guatemala Letters of intent are now being accepted for the 2020 award cycle, through August 30. ASH categorizes applications using the United National Human Development Index, and applicants are evaluated only against those in their same classification to ensure that all applicants are given an equal opportunity regardless of access to resources. Visit www.hematology.org/Global-Research.aspx for more information. Carlos Murga-Zamalloa, MD Pathologist Secures Four-Year ASH-AMFDP Research Award for Minority Scholars Congratulations are in order for Carlos Murga-Zamalloa, MD, who has been selected to participate in the ASH-Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program (ASH-AMFDP), which supports talented scholars from diverse backgrounds. The four- year postdoctoral research award is presented in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Dr. Murga-Zamalloa serves as a house officer in the department of pathology at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor, where his research focuses on the biology of T-cell lymphoma, with an emphasis on the role of actin-related signaling during T-cell lymphoma progression. He will spend at least 70 percent of his ASH- AMFDP–funded research under the mentorship of a senior faculty member at his institution, where he hopes that his project will result in the discovery of novel signaling pathways that contribute to the progression in treatment of T-cell lymphomas. The ASH-AMFDP program is de- signed to enrich the field of hematology by increasing the number of under- represented minority scholars with academic and research appointments and is a component of the ASH Minority Recruitment Initiative. ● April 2019