Dr. Sanghee Hong, assistant professor in the Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapy, is among 35 recipients of the 2025 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Scholar awards.
Dr. Hong’s award is in the area of clinical research for junior faculty members, which provides a career development award of $150,000 over a two- to three-year award term beginning on July 1, 2025. The program funds hematologists in the United States and Canada who conduct basic, translational, and clinical research that advances the understanding and treatment of blood disorders.
Dr. Hong specializes in leukemia, myeloid neoplasm, and cellular therapies including adult bone marrow transplantation. She focuses her clinical research on improving access to and outcomes of cellular therapies. Her work seeks to prevent leukemia relapse and enhance the long-term recovery of transplant patients.
While hematopoietic cell transplantation is the only curative option for many patients with blood cancers, only about half of transplant patients eventually return to work. This gap underscores a significant unmet need in survivorship care.
“My study aims to identify the factors influencing functional recovery and mental health in survivors, including financial stress, caregiver arrangements, and work conditions,” said Dr. Hong. “I plan to develop a pilot program to provide targeted interventions that support survivors in their return to work.”
Dr. Hong is a 2014 Medical College of Wisconsin graduate. She completed an internal medicine residency at Cleveland Clinic followed by fellowship in hematology and medical oncology at Case Western Reserve University, and an advanced fellowship in experimental clinical hematology at Cleveland Clinic.
Now in its 40th year, the ASH Scholar Award is one of the Society’s most prestigious programs, supporting early-career investigators as they transition from training to independent research careers in hematology.