Dr. Kim Hoa Nguyen earned her medical degree in 2002 from Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy University. Then, she studied pediatric resident doctor at the same university and got a master's degree in 2006, followed by a Pediatric PhD degree in 2023. She is now working at Hue Central Hospital in Vietnam. As a vice chair of the division of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology, and Transplant, she plays critical roles in patient care, research, and education. She has received training in the United States, Japan, Singapore, and India as well as other hospitals in Vietnam to acquire new treatment knowledge and skills. She initiated an autologous hematopoietic cell transplant program in Hue and will start an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant soon.
Nguyen is also a long-time active collaborator with St. Jude Global programs, serving as a Primary Delegate for St. Jude Global Alliance - Asia Pacific in addition to participating in Global Neuro-Oncology, Infectious Disease. Nguyen seeks to strengthen her multidisciplinary approach to accelerate progress toward advancing care and cure for children with cancer in Vietnam and beyond. She is now the key doctor who has been contacting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to collaborate in improving the quality of treatment for children with brain tumors in Vietnam. The monthly online meeting of St. Jude neuro-oncologists focuses on complex cases from Vietnam. She received the highest prizes at the Hue Scientific and Technical Innovation Competition from 2021-23. In 2023, Nguyen was honored as one of the 10 women who had the best impact on the Hue community and one of the 10 outstanding doctors at Hue Central Hospital.
Working in Vietnam, doctors face many difficulties in treatment for children with cancer, but the most common difficulty is the shortage of medicine. At this moment, many essential medicines for children with cancer are not available in Vietnam, such as vincristine, 6-MP, topotecan, temozolomide, cisplatin. With that knowledge, Nguyen decided to pursue the Master’s in Global Child Health program at St. Jude to improve her understanding of global healthcare systems, biostatistics, and research. She hopes the Global Child Health program will teach her the way to work with national leaders to pay more attention to children with cancer and provide enough essential medicine for children during their treatment.
Hometown: Hue, Vietnam
Education:
Pediatric PhD - Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy University (2023)
MS - Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy University (2003)
Medical Degree - Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy University (2002)
Publications:
Nguyen HTK, Terao MA, Green DM, Pui CH, Inaba H. Testicular involvement of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children and adolescents: Diagnosis, biology, and management. Cancer 2021 Sep 1;127(17):3067-3081. doi: 10.1002/cncr.33609. Epub 2021 May 25. PMID: 34031876; PMCID: PMC9677247.
Matthay KK, Hylton J, Penumarthy N, Khattab M, Soh SY, Nguyen HTK, Alcasabas AP, Fawzy M, Saab R, Khan MS, Ghandour K, Chantada G, Parikh NS, Faulkner L, Lam CG, Howard SC. Global Neuroblastoma Network: An international multidisciplinary neuroblastoma tumor board for resource-limited countries. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2022 Apr;69(4):e29568. doi: 10.1002/pbc.29568. Epub 2022 Jan 27. PMID: 35084087.
Nguyen HTK (2022). Genetics abnormalities in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia at Hue Central Hospital, Vietnam. Journal of Annals of Clinical and Analytical Medicine doi: 10.4328/ACAM.21373.