Catherine Callaghan Coombs , MD, MS

• Chronic myeloid leukemia
• Myelodysplastic syndromes

Dr. Coombs’s research interests center on the application of genomic correlates to improve the clinical care of patients with leukemia. She has performed research to better understand the genetic risk factors leading to the development of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Additionally, she has characterized a large cohort of solid tumor patients in whom clonal hematopoiesis has been identified on “matched normal” blood sequencing data obtained on next-generation sequencing to assess for associations between clonal hematopoiesis, prior cytotoxic therapy, and impact on long term outcomes such as the development of subsequent hematologic malignancy and overall survival. She also has an interest in the application of molecularly-targeted agents to the treatment of patients with hematologic malignancies.