Maria (paula) Aristizabal MD

Dr. Maria (Paula) Aristizabal is a hematologist-oncologist at Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego and a 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 health disparities, implementation science, quality improvement, bioethics, and global health, with a focus on discovering the causes of pediatric cancer inequities 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 is the principal investigator of several clinical research studies and 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, Curebound-Padres Pedal the Caus,e and the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology. She publishes her work in peer-reviewed journals and presents her work at both national and international meetings.

Among her honors and accomplishments, she has received the National Cancer Institute Minority Spotlight recognition, the Mitchell Thorp Foundation "Pillars of Hope" award, the UC San Diego Hispanic Center of Excellence Scholar award, the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Clinician-Educator award, the American Society of Hematology Scholar award and the University of California Office of the President "Team Science" Scholar award. She currently serves on the Scientific Advisory Board for Curebound.