By: DoM Communications
In this month’s Chair Spotlight, we feature Sakiko Suzuki, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology.
For Dr. Suzuki, a passion for hematology and oncology emerged during a medical school rotation. Witnessing patients recover from treatment while facing challenging medical journeys inspired Dr. Suzuki to pursue a career in medical oncology.
“It was eye-opening as a student to see these people who were really facing life head-on, and I knew that this was the patient population I really wanted to care for,” said Dr. Suzuki. “I loved the connection that you would get to make with the patients when you are taking care of them; it’s such a privilege to get to be part of that journey.”
Dr. Suzuki earned her medical degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. She then completed her internal medicine/pediatric residency at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts, and a fellowship in hematology/oncology at UMass Chan Medical School.
At UMass Chan, Dr. Suzuki serves as the current program director of the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship. She and her colleagues are developing a fellow-driven medical oncology clinic at HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital in Leominster, Massachusetts. In this clinic, fellows take the lead in providing oncology care, with supervision from attending physicians. According to Dr. Suzuki, the clinic offers fellows an oncology-focused educational setting, allowing them to care for patients, including those with breast cancer, in a hands-on setting.
“I saw this as an opportunity for us to figure out how we can offer a new educational setting for the fellows,” explained Dr. Suzuki. “We hope that with this clinic, we can serve the fellows by giving them a new way to see some of the patient population that they didn’t get to see previously and really own the patient care.”
In addition to her leadership role in the fellowship, Dr. Suzuki is also currently working with pediatric hematologist, Dr. Nura El-Haj, in developing a tight-knit collaboration between pediatric hematology and adult hematology clinics to better facilitate the transition of sickle cell patients from one clinic to the other.
“Pediatric hematologists are seeing sickle cell patients, and at some point, in their young adulthood, they have to transition to our clinic for ongoing care,” said Dr. Suzuki. “It’s a nationwide concern that the transition is really difficult, and a lot of patients have lost care during that time, so we are working to figure out how to provide better care for our sickle cell patients in our community.”
Dr. Suzuki finds the most rewarding aspect of her work to be watching fellows graduate from the program and go on to pursue new opportunities.
“It’s really nice to see them from when they start the fellowship and then go on to find their passion and a job that fits their passion,” shared Dr. Suzuki.
She also finds patient care to be a deeply rewarding aspect of her work. Dr. Suzuki values seeing familiar patient faces across different settings, including inpatient care and bone marrow transplant services. “It’s different settings and different relationships, but in all of them, I can’t imagine a career where I don’t get to touch patients' lives like this,” said Dr. Suzuki.
Outside of her clinical and educational responsibilities, Dr. Suzuki participates in Women in Medicine gatherings, where medical students and residents connect with female mentors across the institution. She is also involved in an oncology interest group, a preclinical, student-run organization that offers students insight into pursuing a career in medical oncology.
“I am so lucky to have joined UMass and can’t imagine being as fortunate with the set of people I get to work with as I am here at UMass,” shared Dr. Suzuki.
We thank Dr. Suzuki for her unwavering dedication to our hematology and oncology patients, fellows, and our department!