Brian D. Friend, MD, MS
Department or Service
Location
- Texas Medical Center
Specialty
Phone: 832-826-0870
Contact Information
Research Area
- Bone Marrow Transplant / Stem Cell Transplant
- Cell and gene therapy
- Leukemia
Director, Adolescent and Young Adult Program
Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Section of Hematology-Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine
Education
| School | Education | Degree | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of California San Francisco, Benioff Children's Hospital | fellowship | Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant | 2019 |
| University of California Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine | masters | Master of Science, Clinical Research | 2018 |
| University of California Los Angeles, Mattel Children's Hospital | fellowship | Pediatric Hematology/Oncology | 2018 |
| University of California Los Angeles, Mattel Children's Hospital | residency | Pediatrics | 2015 |
| University of Nebraska Medical Center | medical school | Doctor of Medicine | 2012 |
About
Dr. Brian Friend is a physician at Texas Children's Cancer Center, where he is the Director of the Adolescent and Young Adult Program, and a member of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, specializing in pediatric bone marrow transplantation and cellular therapies. He has a particular interest in treating patients with leukemia and lymphoma.
Dr. Friend's main academic interests are focused on improving outcomes for children, adolescents, and young adults undergoing stem cell transplantation by reducing the toxicity of current treatments, while also developing new therapies that are less harmful to patients. He has a special interest in treating adolescents and young adults since survival for many cancers in this age group has not improved in recent decades, as has been observed with many childhood cancers.
As Director of the Adolescent and Young Adult Program, Dr. Friend leads a multidisciplinary group that strives to deliver comprehensive clinical and psychosocial care including oncofertility services, fosters research collaborations across the cancer center and its affiliates, and trains physicians and other health care providers on how to appropriately care for this unique population.
Organization
| Organization Name | Role |
|---|---|
| American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) | Member |
| American Society of Bone Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT) | Member |
| American Society of Hematology (ASH) | Member |
| American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPHO) | Member |
| Children’s Oncology Group (COG) | Member |
Research Statement
Dr. Brian Friend's research is aimed at developing a better understanding of the risk factors that lead to poor outcomes in pediatric and young adult patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation and cellular therapies. This includes studying the impact of co-morbidities and other health-related biomarkers on transplant-related toxicity, including acute graft-versus-host disease. In addition, he is interested in examining how particular drugs may be metabolized differently by certain groups of people depending on a number of factors including genetics.
Dr. Friend's ultimate goal is to develop more personalized treatment for patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation and cellular therapies, by implementing novel therapies and designing individualized dosing models for a variety of drugs that will result in reducing short and long-term side effects for pediatric and young adult patients. As part of this, Dr. Friend will design and participate in institutional and multicenter clinical trials involving novel therapies and interventions in order to improve outcomes.