3020 Children's Way
MC 5035
San Diego, CA 92123
Hematology/Oncology
Rady Children's Specialists of San Diego
CPMG/RCHN/RCSSD
Pontifical Javerian University School of Medicine
University of the Valley School of Medicine
University of the Valley School of Medicine
UC San Diego
F
Dr. Paula Aristizabal is a hematologist-oncologist at Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego and an associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at UC San Diego. She completed her fellowship in pediatric hematology and oncology at UC San Diego School of Medicine and a Master of Advanced Studies in clinical research at UC San Diego.
In her clinical work at the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders, Dr. Aristizabal specializes in the care of children with cancer and blood disorders, with an emphasis on leukemia, lymphoma and histiocytic disorders. She is the Division's Quality Improvement Lead and chair of the Quality Improvement Committee. Dr. Aristizabal has also been the director of Rady Children's International Outreach Program since 2008 and has partnered with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to lead efforts to establish pediatric oncology programs in resource-constrained settings, including Mexico and Colombia. She is currently an advisor to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital Global Pediatric Medicine Department.
Dr. Aristizabal's research interests include ethics, patient-provider communication and global health, with a focus on discovering the causes of pediatric cancer disparities and developing strategies to better serve patients, including those from underserved communities. She is a member of the UC San Diego Clinical and Translational Research Institute , the UC San Diego Dissemination and Implementation Science Center and the UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center Population Sciences, Disparities and Community Engagement.
Dr. Aristizabal has completed training in implementation science, qualitative research, mixed methods, bioethics and quality improvement, and is the principal investigator of several clinical research studies. She enjoys mentoring trainees and junior faculty in diverse quality improvement and research projects. She has received research grant funding from various organizations, including the National Cancer Institute, the National Institutes of Health, the American Cancer Society, the American Society of Hematology, the Alex Lemonade Stand Foundation, the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology and Hyundai Hope on Wheels. She is currently the principal investigator of a National Cancer Institute-funded Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award to Promote Faculty Diversity in Biomedical Research (K08), aimed at implementing a navigation intervention to improve research literacy and diversity in pediatric cancer clinical trials. She publishes her work in peer-reviewed journals and presents her work at both national and international meetings.
Among her honors and accomplishments, she received the National Cancer Institute Minority Spotlight recognition (2019), the Mitchell Thorp Foundation "Pillars of Hope" award (2018), the UC San Diego Hispanic Center of Excellence Scholar award (2018), the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Clinician-Educator award (2016), the American Society of Hematology Scholar award (2016), the University of California Office of the President "Team Science" Scholar award (2015) and the Rice University-Puentes Consortium Scholar award (2015).
Dr. Aristizabal completed her medical degree and pediatrics residency in Colombia, her home country, and she is fluent in Spanish.
Diverse populations and enrollment in pediatric cancer clinical trials: Challenges and opportunities
Paula Aristizabal
Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics associated with vitamin D status in newly diagnosed pediatric cancer patients
Paula Aristizabal, Michael Sherer, Bianca P Perdomo, Esteban Castelao, Courtney D Thornburg, James Proudfoot, Elizabeth Jacobs, Ron S Newfield, Peter Zage, William Roberts, Maria Elena Martinez