ASH Directions
ASH Members Visit Congress to
Advocate for Hematology
The seventh annual American Soci-
ety of Hematology (ASH) Advocacy
Leadership Institute took place
September 27-28, 2017, in Wash-
ington, DC. This two-day workshop
is an opportunity for ASH members
to learn about legislation and health
policy affecting hematology re-
search and practice, while training
to become effective advocates. Par-
ticipants attended sessions at ASH
headquarters delivered by guest
speakers from the health policy
community and visited more than
35 congressional offices to advocate
for a $2 billion increase in National
Institutes of Health (NIH) funding
as well as the Sickle Cell Disease
Research, Surveillance, Prevention,
and Treatment Act, which will be
introduced soon in the Senate.
ASH Bridges Gap with Research Grants
ASH awarded five investigators $150,000 each
in the latest round of ASH Bridge Grants for
promising basic, translational, and clinical
hematology research that cannot be funded
by NIH. These grants serve as a one-year
bridge for researchers facing gaps in multi-
year funding, allowing them to continue their
life-saving research and strengthen their NIH
grant applications. Since April 2013, ASH has
awarded $11.2 million in Bridge Grant support
to 92 investigators across 57 institutions.
Projects funded include improving therapy
for leukemia, using molecular targeting to
treat iron deficiencies, and enhancing the
understanding of specific genomic instabilities.
14
ASH Clinical News
This year’s winners are:
• John H. Bushweller, PhD, University of
Virginia
• Selina Chen-Kiang, PhD, Weill-Cornell
Medicine
• Fotini Gounari, PhD, DSc, The University
of Chicago
• Akil Merchant, MD, University of
Southern California
• Anupama Narla, MD, Stanford University
Advocacy Leadership Institute participants convene at ASH
headquarters. Front row (seated, L-R): Lee Hilliard, MD;
Lori Muffly, MD; Jennifer Green, MD; Paul Shami, MD; Amy
Sharma, MD Middle row (L-R): Yvonne Datta, MD; Melanie
Fields, MD, MSCI; Alan Rosmarin (Chair), MD; Rebecca
Hesterberg, PhD candidate; Sagar Patel, MD; Maria Graca
Almeida-Porada, MD, PhD; Courtney Jones, PhD; Bilal Khalid,
MD; Kevin Wood, MD Back row (L-R): Amar Kelkar, MD; A.
Kyle Mack, MD; Donielle Sliwa, MD, MPH; Georg Aue, MD,
PhD; James Blachly, MD; Shannon McKinney-Freeman, PhD;
Laura Finn, MD; Frank Passero, MD
Blood Is Searching for Its
Next Editor-in-Chief
ASH’s flagship journal Blood is looking for its next
Editor-in-Chief. Candidates must have broad and
comprehensive knowledge of basic research and clini-
cal investigation in hematology and its subspecialty
areas; a distinguished research and publication record;
high standing among peers; and demonstrated editing,
writing, and reviewing skills. The Blood Editor-in-Chief
serves for five years beginning January 1, 2020. Inter-
ested ASH members are encouraged to submit a letter of
intent or provide the name of a potential candidate.
For a detailed position description and application
requirements, visit bloodjournal.org/eic. The nomination
deadline is February 28, 2018.
November 2017