Smita Bhatia is an Indian-born American oncologist. She is the Director of the Institute for Cancer Outcomes and Survivorship in the

University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine The University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine is the medical school of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) located in Birmingham, Alabama, United States with branch campuses in Huntsville, Montgomery, and ...

, as well as the Vice Chair for Outcomes in the Department of Pediatrics and Senior Advisor for Cancer Outcomes Research at the O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB.

Early life and education

Bhatia was born and raised in India. She completed her

medical degree A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...

and

residency Residency may refer to: * Artist-in-residence, a program to sponsor the residence and work of visual artists, writers, musicians, etc. * Concert residency, a series of concerts performed at one venue * Domicile (law), the act of establishing or m ...

at the

All India Institutes of Medical Sciences The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. These institutes ha ...

but moved to

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

for her postdoctoral fellowship. While completing her fellowships in blood banking, pediatric hematology/oncology, and bone marrow transplantation, Bhatia also completed her

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in public health. During her training at the University of Minnesota, Bhatia received the 1996 Young Investigator Award from Conquer Cancer.

Career

Following her fellowships, Bhatia and her husband Ravi accepted faculty positions at the

City of Hope National Medical Center City of Hope is a private, non-profit clinical research center, hospital and graduate school located in Duarte, California, United States. The center's main campus resides on of land adjacent to the boundaries of Duarte and Irwindale, California ...

. During her early tenure at the City of Hope, Bhatia established a cohort of cancer patients who she followed up after blood or marrow transplants to measure their cognitive function on extensive, standardized paper-based tests. Two years later, she was appointed Founding Chair of the new Department of Population Sciences at the City of Hope. She was also elected a Member of the

American Society for Clinical Investigation The American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI), established in 1908, is one of the oldest and most respected medical honor societies in the United States. Organization and purpose The ASCI is an honorary society to which more than 2,800 p ...

. Bhatia remained in this role until 2014 when she left to become the director of the Institute for Cancer Outcomes and Survivorship in the

University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a public research university in Birmingham, Alabama, United States. Founded in 1969 and part of the University of Alabama System, UAB has grown to be the state's largest employer, with more than ...

(UAB) School of Medicine. While serving as director of the Institute for Cancer Outcomes and Survivorship, Bhatia became the principal investigator (PI) on a project on how personalized treatment of childhood cancer can minimize toxicity. She also received the 2018 Outstanding Investigator Award from the

National Cancer Institute The National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the United States National Cancer Program and is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is one of eleven agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ...

. As the PI, Bhatia also served as vice chair for Outcomes in the UAB Department of Pediatrics and senior adviser for Cancer Outcomes Research at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB. In 2021, she was appointed to the board of directors at the St. Baldrick's Foundation.

Personal life

Bhatia and her husband have two children together.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bhatia, Smita Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Indian women medical doctors American women oncologists American oncologists University of Alabama at Birmingham faculty University of Minnesota School of Public Health alumni Members of the American Society for Clinical Investigation