News Release

Published on: March 29, 2005

St. Louis Physician Selected for College of American Pathologists Foundation 2005-06 Scholars Program

Northfield, Ill.—The College of American Pathologists Foundation (CAPF) has awarded Omar Hameed, MBChB, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, a $25,000 fellowship as part of CAPF 2005-06 Scholars Award Program.  

Dr. Hameed will receive one of three awards from this national scholarship program.  Kenichi Tamama, MD, PhD, of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and Neil MacDonald Renwick, MD, PhD, of Columbia University in New York, are the other award recipients.  The Scholars Award Program provides fellowships for advanced training in the science of pathology.

The CAPF Scholars Award enables young medical investigators to develop independent and productive research careers by providing $25,000 in salary support for one year of pure research.   Research and educational advances supported by the CAPF Scholars Award benefit both the research and clinical communities by keeping talented investigators and practicing pathologists in the "pipeline" for tomorrow's discoveries. The program promotes talent in pathology, advances productive investigation, and encourages young pathologists to pursue academic medicine.

Dr. Hameed’s project titled:  “Indoleamine Dioxygenase (IDO) Expression Levels and Relationship to Clinicopathological Features and Survival in Breast Cancer” researches the inhibition of IDO and its possible relationship to stage of mestastis and potential survival for breast cancer patients.  This research is likely to have important consequences for new treatment therapies to help improve outcomes of breast cancer.

“Many breast cancer patients either don’t respond to or are not eligible for particular treatment regimens,” Dr. Hameed said.  “I am thrilled to receive this grant from the College, which will help in my work to create new therapeutic options for patients. ”

Dr. Hameed received his medical degree from Baghdad University School of Medicine in Iraq, did an internship at the Medical City Teaching Hospital in Baghdad and residencies at Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan, St. Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York and the Washington University Medical Center.  He is currently serving a surgical fellowship in pathology at Washington University Medical Center.

Through annual conferences, publications and special events, the CAPF promotes science and education in an effort to improve the delivery of pathology services to patients, to expand medical research and funding of individual research projects through sponsorship of the Scholars Program, and to encourage leadership through sponsorship of the annual Herbert Lansky Memorial Award and the CAP Foundation Young Leader Awards.

The College of American Pathologists (CAP) is a medical society that serves nearly 16,000 physician members and the laboratory community throughout the world.  It is the world’s largest association composed exclusively of pathologists and is widely considered the leader in laboratory quality assurance.  The CAP is an advocate for high quality and cost-effective patient care.