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Institute for Data Science in Oncology Fellowship

About the Program

The Institute for Data Science in Oncology (IDSO) Fellowship provides training for recent medical and doctoral graduates in the application of data science to cancer care, prevention, research, and operations.

The program is designed to endow junior physicians and researchers with the skills and experience to become leaders in data science for oncology. The fellowship program will provide a wide range of training suitable for those with clinical and/or research backgrounds. Fellows will be able to tailor their training to suit their needs whether it be the development of technical skills or strategies to maximize impact to improve the lives of cancer patients.

All fellows will learn from our exemplary team of clinical and research faculty members through a structured curriculum, including hands-on training and independent research. Additionally, fellows will benefit from IDSO’s active community and that of MD Anderson more broadly. Upon completion of the program, fellows will be well-positioned to apply for employment in clinical, computational science, administrative, or research positions in academic, industry, and/or medical settings.

The IDSO Fellowship consists of an initial appointment of 1 year with an expected reappointment for a second year. In exceptional cases, reappointment to a third year may be granted; appointments may not exceed 3 years.

Why choose our exceptional program?

Our fellowship program provides a unique experience for trainees. Embedded within one of the world’s most respected cancer centers, IDSO will harness the power of data and bring data science to every decision MD Anderson makes – accelerating the pace to end cancer and improving the lives of cancer patients and their families. We seek to develop leaders equipped to innovate at the intersection of cancer and computational approaches. A hands-on curriculum throughout, complemented by faculty-guided research, defines the IDSO Fellowship Program.

Our Leadership

Chris Gibbons, Ph.D.
Director, IDSO Fellowship Program
Associate Professor, Symptom Research

Dr. Gibbons’ faculty appointment and role as chief of the Patient Centered Analytics section within Internal Medicine seeks to improve the cancer care and patient outcomes by combining patient-reported data with modern psychometrics, user-centered design, machine learning and big data analytics. As director for the IDSO Fellowship Program, he seeks to endow future leaders in data science with the practical skills and understanding to leverage data and analytics and gain new insights to improve cancer care and outcomes for all patients.

Prior to joining MD Anderson, Dr. Gibbons was a founding Co-Director of the Patient-Reported Outcomes, Value, and Experience (PROVE) Center at Harvard Mass General Brigham and Director of Health Assessment and Innovation at the University of Cambridge Psychometrics Center. Since 2015, Dr. Gibbons has taught annual courses on data science, machine learning and psychometrics at the University of Cambridge and has been invited to present on these topics around the world at institutions including Harvard Business School, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the Karolinska Institute.

Stephanie Schmidt, Ph.D.
Group Leader – Data Science
Genomic Medicine

Stephanie Schmidt, Ph.D., serves as the founding Group Leader of MD Anderson’s Adaptive, AI-Augmented Drug Discovery and Development (A3D3a) platform. Reporting to the Director of Therapeutics Data Science, she has assembled and guides a multidisciplinary team to apply data science approaches to speed translational research towards new cancer therapies.

Dr. Schmidt’s work has shown how analyzing patient data from different platforms together by integrative multi-omic analysis, rather than considering data from different platforms individually or in pairs as is common, affords a novel, comprehensive perspective on cancer that can uncover new patient biomarkers and treatment opportunities. Collaborating closely with clinical groups including the Lung Cancer Moon Shot and the Rare Tumor Initiative, she is driven to deliver tangible results for patients by harnessing her training in biology, computation, and engineering.

Her unique background as a bioengineer spans translational research, computational biology, genomics, and tissue engineering. She earned her PhD in Bioengineering from Stanford University, where her thesis work focused on harnessing and understanding genomic diversity to develop new techniques for genomics. She was recognized with the Hertz Foundation Fellowship, NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, and Stanford Gabilan Graduate Fellowship; she was named a Siebel Scholar, an international award for top graduate students in their final year of study.

More broadly, Dr. Schmidt is deeply involved in service and outreach activities. She launched and serves as Research Director of the MD Anderson Institute for Data Science in Oncology Fellowship Program to train the next generation of clinicians and researchers in applying data science to oncology care, research, and operations.

Requirements

Fellows must hold an M.D. or Ph.D. degree before starting the program. Applicants should demonstrate leadership, extracurricular participation, and/or career planning and exploration leading to an interest in oncology clinical care or data and computational research at an academic institution.

MD Anderson offers a smoke-free environment and is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.

Application

Applications for the next cohort should be submitted online in the spring of 2024 (specific dates to be announced). Required documents include: 

A cover letter outlining research, education, and training; experiences leading to an interest in data science in oncology; and career plans (3 pages max). 
An updated resume (3 pages max).
References will be requested after the initial round of interviews.

Top candidates will be contacted for interviews. The IDSO Fellowship Program has several positions available. We will accept applications on an ongoing basis until suitable candidates have been selected. Applications received by the deadline will receive priority review.   

The successful applicant will be asked to create an account in Discover (MD Anderson’s trainee appointment management portal) and submit the documentation required for an educational appointment at MD Anderson. The approximate appointment start date is early September 2024. 

Educational Activities

The IDSO Fellowship Program uniquely emphasizes hands-on training and experiential learning. An intensive curriculum comprised of lectures and guided assignments led by faculty leaders from across the institution serves as the core of the fellowship. The curriculum reflects the five focus areas of IDSO:

Quantitative Analysis and Insight Extraction from Imaging and Pathology Data
Multi-cell Interactions Informed Through Single Cell Analytics and Data Science
Computational Modeling and AI-Augmented Drug Discovery and Development
Modeling Personalized and Population-based Interventions on Cancer
Development of Automated Approaches to Increase Access, Safety, and Quality in Cancer Care

Experience gained from IDSO will be complemented by opportunities to take didactic courses and/or to collaborate with several departments at MD Anderson (e.g., Office of Sponsored Programs, Diagnostic Imaging, Radiation Oncology, Genomic Medicine, etc.). Fellows will follow a learning plan to be developed in collaboration with their supervisor prior to the start of their appointment.

In addition to program-specific educational opportunities, fellows will benefit from the following:

IDSO hosts the Data Science Forum, a weekly seminar series featuring both established and emerging investigators working at the intersection of cancer and computational approaches.
Fellows are encouraged to attend the many other lectures available at the institution that may be relevant to their training experience.
Participating in frequent laboratory group meetings of ongoing research are a central part of the research experience.

Our Fellows

Hesham Alghodhaifi, Ph.D.,
Fellow, Radiation Oncology - Research

Mentor: Caroline Chung, M.D., vice president and chief data officer

Sayaka Ishizawa, Ph.D.
Fellow
Health Services Research

Mentor: Iakovos Toumazis, Ph.D., assistant professor, Health Services Research

Alexandria Lau
Graduate Research Assistant – GSBS
Translational Molecular Pathology

Mentor: Yinyin Yuan, Ph.D., professor, Translational Molecular Pathology

Yunhe Liu, Ph.D.
Fellow
Genomic Medicine

Mentor: Linghua Wang, Ph.D., associate professor, Genomic Medicine

Zhuohe Liu, Ph.D.
Fellow
Translational Molecular Pathology

Mentor: Yinyin Yuan, Ph.D., professor, Translational Molecular Pathology

Sheng-Chieh Lu, Ph.D.
Data Scientist
Symptom Research

Mentor: Chris Gibbons, Ph.D., associate professor, Symptom Research

Shitong Mao, Ph.D.
Fellow
Head and Neck Surgery

Mentor: Katherine Hutcheson, Ph.D., professor, Head and Neck Surgery

Amy Moreno, M.D.
Assistant Professor
Radiation Oncology

Mentor: David Rosenthal, M.D., professor, Radiation Oncology

Samah Morsi, M.D.
Fellow
Radiation Oncology

Mentor: Caroline Chung, M.D., vice president and chief data officer

Seyyed Mousavi Janbeh Sarayi, Ph.D.
Senior Statistical Analyst
Health Services Research

Mentor: Iakovos Toumazis, Ph.D., assistant professor, Health Services Research

Renu Nargund, Ph.D.
Data Scientist
Health Services Research

Mentor: Iakovos Toumazis, Ph.D., assistant professor, Health Services Research

Sara Nofal
Graduate Research Assistant -UT Health Science Center
Health Services Research

Mentors: Jianjun Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor, Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, and Iakovos Toumazis, Ph.D., assistant professor, Health Services Research