Dr. Esperanza B. Papadopoulos

Dr. Esperanza B. Papadopoulos, MD, is a board-certified hematologist and oncologist specializing in bone marrow and stem cell transplantation at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where she serves as Clinical Director of the Adult Bone Marrow Transplantation Inpatient Service. In this role, she leads a dedicated multidisciplinary team of physicians and nurse specialists who care for patients throughout their transplant hospitalization. Her clinical practice centers on allogeneic transplantation, the use of stem cells or bone marrow derived from a donor other than the patient, and encompasses the full range of stem cell sources including related and unrelated donors, bone marrow, peripheral blood, and umbilical cord blood units. She cares for patients with a broad spectrum of hematologic malignancies, including acute myelogenous leukemia, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

A central focus of Dr. Papadopoulos's research is risk stratification, identifying which type of allogeneic transplant offers the best outcomes for each individual patient. She is actively involved in studies aimed at reducing the risk of graft-versus-host disease, a serious and potentially life-threatening complication of allogeneic transplantation. One approach she is developing involves isolating and removing the T lymphocytes responsible for triggering this response, producing a stem cell graft that is very low in these cells, a strategy particularly beneficial for patients with acute leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome in earlier stages of disease. She also studies allogeneic transplantation for patients with more advanced leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome, and participates in studies evaluating combination chemotherapy regimens for advanced or refractory acute leukemia.

The overarching goal of Dr. Papadopoulos's clinical practice and research is to make potentially curative transplant therapy available to every patient who can benefit from it. By refining transplant techniques, improving donor selection strategies, and reducing treatment-related complications, she works to expand access to allogeneic transplantation for patients who might otherwise have limited options. Her dedication to individualized patient care and her leadership of the inpatient transplant service reflect a commitment to advancing outcomes for patients facing serious hematologic cancers.