Hematology

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Each year, Mayo Clinic experts treat about 30,000 people with blood diseases. At Mayo Clinic, you have access to a full range of treatment options, including standard and cutting-edge, innovative treatments. Our team approach with one-stop care plus efficient scheduling means accurate, rapid assessment, timely start of treatment and excellent follow-up care.

Mayo Clinic hematology experts in blood and bone marrow cancers work within the larger Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as a comprehensive cancer center, which promotes collaboration between cancer research institutions. The Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center ranks in the top tier of cancer centers in the United States for cancer research, treatment and education. The Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center receives approximately $119 million in competitive peer reviewed grants a year, including the including the NCI's Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE).

Being a comprehensive cancer center gives Mayo Clinic patients access to the latest and best treatments around the country.

Cutting-edge treatments

To ensure that you have access to the latest treatments possible, Mayo Clinic hematology experts conduct research at the leading edge of science. Our researchers intensively study the causes and mechanisms of blood diseases and develop novel treatments to cure these disorders.

Among the innovative treatments experts in hematology are developing include those that harness the body's immune system, such as:

• Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy — taking the patient's cells that help with immunity (T cells), engineering them to attack cancer cells and infusing the cells back into the body
• Immune checkpoint inhibitors — delivering drugs that help your immune system recognize and target specific cancer cells
• Virotherapy — bioengineering a virus, such as measles, and arming it to kill specific cancer cells

Mayo Clinic hematologists also collaborate with hospitals around the United States and the world to conduct clinical trials. The close connection between clinical care and research at Mayo Clinic makes it possible for eligible patients to enroll in cutting-edge clinical research studies, which gives them access to the most advanced treatments that aren't yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

Make an appointment to learn more about cutting-edge research and treatments for your hematologic condition.

Collaborative care

With more than 70 hematology experts across Mayo Clinic's three campuses, Mayo Clinic specialists have diagnosed and treated just about every blood disorder known to medicine.

Because blood disorders can affect other organs and areas of the body, Mayo Clinic hematologists collaborate with experts in nearly every specialty — internal medicine, radiology, transplantation, oncology, radiation oncology, pathology and others. They work together to accurately diagnose your condition and tailor an appropriate care plan individualized to your specific needs.

Because of this close collaboration, oftentimes Mayo Clinic experts can accomplish in days what may take weeks or even months elsewhere.

Care focused on your needs

At Mayo Clinic, you are more than just your disease. Our hematologists understand the daily challenges a blood condition can present. They look beyond your blood disease to provide care for the whole you through a diverse range of services for you, including:

• Nutrition
• Patient education
• Psychiatry and psychology
• Social work
• Rehabilitation
• Cancer survivorship clinics
• Palliative care
• Integrative medicine

Hematologists at Mayo Clinic constantly work to make patient care better and more convenient. For instance, they conduct bone marrow transplant procedures as hospital-based outpatient procedures, which reduces the time you'll spend in the hospital.

They developed an innovative program at Mayo Clinic's campus in Minnesota to reduce travel back and forth to the clinic for transplant patients staying at the Gift of Life Transplant House. Specialists draw blood early in the morning at a dedicated facility at the house. A lab at Mayo Clinic quickly processes the samples so patients can see a doctor later in the day if necessary. For patients with frequent blood draws, this saves time and energy, allowing them to focus on family, healing and recovery.

Mayo Clinic's campuses in Arizona and Florida also offer housing for people undergoing transplant procedures.

Mayo Clinic Health System clinics, hospitals and health care facilities serve more than 60 communities in Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota. These sites bring Mayo Clinic hematology expertise and individualized care to their local communities.

Mayo Clinic experts collaborate with professionals in other health care facilities through the Mayo Clinic Care Network. The Mayo Clinic Care Network uses technology and physician collaboration to deliver a full spectrum of medical expertise to communities across the country and throughout the world. Through the network, Mayo Clinic collaborates with local providers, complementing local expertise and providing additional peace of mind.

Pediatric Hematology

Blood disorders in children are particularly concerning, as their tissue is still growing. Unfortunately, about 40 percent of all childhood cancer is blood related.

To help children and adolescents with blood disorders, Mayo Clinic pediatric hematologists in Minnesota work through the Mayo Clinic Children's Center.

At Mayo Clinic's campus in Arizona, pediatric and hematology experts collaborate with the Phoenix Children's Hospital to provide care to young patients. Together, the two hospitals oversee a single bone marrow transplant program for children.

Pediatric patients receive care at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida through a partnership with Nemours Children's Specialty Care and Wolfson Children's Hospital.