Michael Ortiz
Outside of his clinical work and research, Dr. Michael Ortiz loves cooking, gardening, and spending time with his young daughter.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
In medical school, Dr. Michael Ortiz (he/him) decided to work with children after a mentoring program paired him with a boy who had Ewing sarcoma. “I connected with him,” Michael said. “And I was really motivated to help.”
Michael is a physician–scientist who cares for children with rare solid tumors, especially kidney and liver tumors. With his research, he works to bring the most promising treatments to the children who need them. But knowing which drugs work best for rare cancers is challenging because treatment data are sparse and not standardized.
“CCDI has the potential to be a game changer for us,” Michael said, adding that with data on rare cancers consolidated and standardized, he could use the data to build clinical trials for only the most effective treatments. “If we get engagement from the pediatric oncology community,” he said, “we can learn a tremendous amount from each other.”