American Society of Hematology honors student with competitive award

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) has selected Cara Noel a second-year medical student at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, along with 32 other medical students and residents from across the country, to receive the 2024 Hematology Opportunities for the Next Generation of Research Scientists (HONORS) Award.

The ASH HONORS Award aims to support talented medical students and residents who are interested in hematology but haven’t yet entered a hematology-related training program. Recipients receive funds to conduct hematology research projects and work with an ASH research mentor who’ll assist and oversee the awardee’s work and progress.

Noel is interested in translational research. Since high school, she’s particularly loved virus research and exploring how viruses interact with their hosts. There she did T4 bacteriophage research, and while in college she performed Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella bacteriophage-related research. Her continued work in the field, with a more medical focus, has her focusing on adapting an assay to easily and cost-effectively determine the methylation status of the Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) epigenome.

“This test will be used as a biomarker to predict treatment response in patients with EBV-positive lymphoma, allowing more targeted and effective therapy,” Noel says.

Noel aims to refine her wet lab skills and learn more about the scientific process. Working with her mentors, she’s learned to design experiments and analyze data while developing scientific reasoning skills. Throughout the summer, she’ll join Robert Baiocchi, MD, PhD, professor of Internal Medicine and director of the Ohio State College of Medicine’s and the Department of Internal Medicine’s Physician-Scientist Training Programs.

“I hope to learn more about and develop relationships with the patients who are on the other end of the research we are working on," Noel says. “I believe such on-going research will lead to key discoveries in cancer treatment within the next few decades."

Research is an integral part of what makes Ohio State such a force in the global medical community. Our investment in research and commitment to the investigative process have led to many breakthroughs and innovative discoveries. We encourage research at all levels, knowing that the research seeds planted today will yield life-changing results – now, and in the future.