
Katherine R. Calvo, M.D., Ph.D.
Senior Investigator
Department of Laboratory Medicine
NIH Clinical Center
Research Topics
Dr. Calvo studies how inherited and acquired genetic changes can lead to bone marrow failure, weakened immune systems, and blood cancers. Her lab investigates changes in small RNA molecules, genes, and gene regulation—also known as epigenetics—that are linked to how these diseases begin and develop, especially in the bone marrow. One major focus is understanding why some people with inherited gene mutations go on to develop bone marrow cancer, while others do not. Her team uses a combination of genetic research, bone marrow tissue studies, advanced DNA sequencing, chromosome analysis, and patient medical histories to better understand these conditions, improve diagnoses, and evaluate treatment responses. Their work includes several diseases such as myelodysplastic syndrome, acute myeloid leukemia, chronic myelomonocytic leukemia, follicular lymphoma, multiple myeloma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and bone marrow failure.
Biography
Dr. Katherine Calvo is the Chief of the Hematology Laboratory Service in the Department of Laboratory Medicine at the NIH Clinical Center. She earned her BA from Reed College and her MD and PhD from the University of California, San Diego, in 2003. Her doctoral research in molecular pathology focused on the role of homeobox genes in the development of acute leukemia, including molecular mechanisms involving HoxA9, E2A-PBX1, and Nup98-HoxA9.
Dr. Calvo joined the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in 2003, where she completed a residency in Anatomic Pathology followed by a fellowship in Hematopathology. At NCI, her research included studying post-translational modifications of cell signaling proteins in tumors using protein microarrays, and examining the role of cytokines in the lymph node environment of follicular lymphoma.
In 2008, Dr. Calvo became an attending hematopathologist and researcher in the Hematology Section of the Department of Laboratory Medicine at the NIH Clinical Center. There, she developed a research program that integrates clinical and anatomic pathology analysis of bone marrow diseases with laboratory-based research to better understand disease biology and improve diagnostic classification.
Dr. Calvo is a recognized expert in germline predisposition to blood cancers. She played a key role in describing the bone marrow pathology of newly discovered diseases at NIH, including GATA2 deficiency, VEXAS syndrome (vacuoles, E1 enzyme encoded by UBA1, X-linked, autoinflammation, and somatic), and Ras-associated autoimmune leukoproliferative disorder (RALD). She has authored or co-authored over 150 peer-reviewed publications.
In 2024, Dr. Calvo was appointed Chief of the Hematology Laboratory Service in the Department of Laboratory Medicine.
Selected Publications
- Wang W, Chen R, Droll S, Barber E, Saleh L, Corrigan-Cummins M, Trick M, Anastas V, Hawk NV, Zhao Z, Vinh DC, Hsu A, Hickstein DD, Holland SM, Calvo KR. miR-181c regulates MCL1 and cell survival in GATA2 deficient cells. J Leukoc Biol. 2022;111(4):805-816.
- Obiorah IE, Patel BA, Groarke EM, Wang W, Trick M, Ombrello AK, Ferrada MA, Wu Z, Gutierrez-Rodrigues F, Lotter J, Wilson L, Hoffmann P, Cardona DO, Patel N, Dulau-Florea A, Kastner DL, Grayson PC, Beck DB, Young NS, Calvo KR. Benign and malignant hematologic manifestations in patients with VEXAS syndrome due to somatic mutations in UBA1. Blood Adv. 2021;5(16):3203-3215.
- Saleh LM, Wang W, Herman SE, Saba NS, Anastas V, Barber E, Corrigan-Cummins M, Farooqui M, Sun C, Sarasua SM, Zhao Z, Abousamra NK, Elbaz O, Abdelghaffar HA, Wiestner A, Calvo KR. Ibrutinib downregulates a subset of miRNA leading to upregulation of tumor suppressors and inhibition of cell proliferation in chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Leukemia. 2017;31(2):340-349.
- Ganapathi KA, Townsley DM, Hsu AP, Arthur DC, Zerbe CS, Cuellar-Rodriguez J, Hickstein DD, Rosenzweig SD, Braylan RC, Young NS, Holland SM, Calvo KR. GATA2 deficiency-associated bone marrow disorder differs from idiopathic aplastic anemia. Blood. 2015;125(1):56-70.
- Wang W, Corrigan-Cummins M, Hudson J, Maric I, Simakova O, Neelapu SS, Kwak LW, Janik JE, Gause B, Jaffe ES, Calvo KR. MicroRNA profiling of follicular lymphoma identifies microRNAs related to cell proliferation and tumor response. Haematologica. 2012;97(4):586-94.
Related Scientific Focus Areas
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
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This page was last updated on Saturday, August 2, 2025