The National Bleeding Disorders Foundation (NBDF) has announced the recipients of its 2025 research grant cycle, providing new research funding through its the Judith Graham Pool Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Excellence Fellowships in Social Work, Nursing, and Physical Therapy, and the Sanofi-sponsored Career Development Award. This year’s cohort reflects the full breath of bleeding disorders research, spanning basic science, clinical investigation, and qualitative studies led by nursing, social work, and physical therapy professionals. The awards underscore NBDF’s commitment to advancing multidisciplinary research and improving outcomes for the bleeding disorders community.
Judith Graham Pool Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
Alice Todaro
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Understanding Biology and Regulation of FV-short
Dr. Alice Todaro received her BSc and MSc in biomolecular sciences from the University of Ferrara, Italy. She obtained her PhD in biochemistry and molecular biology at CARIM (Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht), Maastricht University, The Netherlands. Her doctoral work focused on Factor V/FV-short and novel therapeutic approaches for bleeding disorders, resulting in two first-author publications, a review article, two awards, and multiple presentations at national and international congresses. Currently, she is postdoctoral fellow at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in the laboratory of Dr. Rodney Camire. With the support of the JGP fellowship, her research work will focus on the regulatory mechanisms and physiological implications of FV-short in hemostasis.
NEHA Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
Saurabh Kumar, MD
Versiti Wisconsin Inc.
The Role of the Tfh/Tfr Pathway in FVIII Immune Responses in Hemophilia A Mice
Dr. Saurabh Kumar is working as a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Qizhen Shi’s lab at the Versiti Blood Research Institute, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He received his Ph.D. from the CSIR-Central Institute of Aromatic and Medicinal Plants/Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. As a recipient of the NEHA fellowship, he will investigate the role of the Tfh/Tfr pathway in the immune responses to FVIII during the development of FVIII inhibitors in hemophilia A (HA) mice. His goal is to develop new interventions that can prevent FVIII immune responses in HA patients and help establish effective immune tolerance in those with inhibitors.
Nursing Excellence Fellowship
Caroline Trotter
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Atlanta, GA
Identifying Vitamin D Deficiency in Adolescents with a Bleeding Disorder Receiving Treatment for Heavy Menstrual Bleeding: A Preliminary Study
Caroline Trotter is a pediatric nurse practitioner certified in both primary and acute care. She has worked at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta for 11 years with the last four as an advanced practice provider (APP) in the hemophilia treatment center (HTC). She has been fortunate to receive mentorship and guidance from HTC providers whose clinical practice and expertise is nationally and internationally recognized. Ms. Trotter has a passion for caring for patients with bleeding disorders from birth to young adulthood, particularly females with heavy menstrual bleeding. Her goal is to continue to improve care for patients through evidence-based practice and research.
Ms. Trotter is interested in studying heavy menstrual bleeding, subsequent treatment and vitamin D deficiency and bone health. She will monitor female patients undergoing treatment for bleeding disorders on these treatments and assess for any potential side effects, including decreased vitamin D levels.
Social Work Excellence Fellowship
Merika Hawes
August University, Augusta, GA
Emergency Preparedness in Bleeding Disorders Patients
Merika Hawes, MSW, LMSW is the hemophilia social worker at the Augusta University Pediatric Hemophilia Treatment Center at the Children's Hospital of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia. Ms. Hawes received her Master of Social Work from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. She has worked with children, adolescents, and families with both bleeding and clotting disorders since 2021. She has more than ten years of experience as a social worker, with specific training in bleeding disorders, suicide prevention, and crisis management. Merika has been a part of NAMI Augusta since 2015.
During natural disasters children with chronic health conditions may experience added stress due to interruptions in treatment, exposure to environmental triggers, damage of medical supplies, and challenges with accessing medications or medical equipment. With the increase in the rate of natural disasters, there has been an increase in short- and long-term posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression among patients with chronic health conditions and their caregivers. “Emergency Preparedness of Bleeding Disorders” aims to increase bleeding disorder patients’ ability to prepare for natural disasters; decrease anxiety during future disasters; decrease PTSD following natural disasters; and decrease depressive symptoms following natural disasters.
Physical Therapy Excellence Fellowship
Arthur Long, DPT, OCS
University of California, San Francisco, CA
Strength in Numbers: Quantifying Grip Strength as a Clinical Assessment Tool in People with Bleeding Disorders
Arthur Long, DPT, OCS is a board-certified orthopedic clinical specialist and faculty member at the University of California, San Francisco, where he teaches in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program and provides clinical care at the Adult Hemophilia Treatment Center. Arthur’s NBDF-funded project, Strength in Numbers, investigates grip strength as a practical and meaningful tool for evaluating upper extremity function in people with bleeding disorders. Through this research, he aims to advance clinical practice and assessment of joint health in the bleeding disorders community.
Looking ahead, Arthur aims to deepen his involvement in bleeding disorders care across clinical, academic, and research pathways. He is launching an initial investigation into the clinical utility of grip strength testing in this population—an effort that he hopes will lay the groundwork for future longitudinal studies and multicenter collaborations. Arthur also plans to involve PT students in this project to increase their awareness of the challenges faced by people with bleeding disorders and inspire future contributions to this important area of care.
Sanofi-Sponsored Career Development Award
Kirsty Hillier
New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY
Elucidating the Role of Autoreactive Extrafollicular B Cells in Pediatric Immune Thrombocytopenia
Kirsty Hillier, MD, is an assistant professor of pediatric hematology/oOncology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and an attending physician at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone. Dr. Hillier is a physician-scientist dedicated to improving outcomes for children with autoimmune cytopenias. After earning her medical degree, she completed her pediatric residency and chief residency at Texas Children’s Hospital/Baylor College of Medicine. She subsequently completed her pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where she trained in immunohematology and explored autoreactive B cell biology in the lab of Dr. Shiv Pillai at the Ragon Institute of Mass General Brigham, MIT, and Harvard.
In her current role, Dr. Hillier conducts translational research to investigate immune cytopenia biology and outcomes. Her project focuses on understanding B cell dysfunction in immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), including its impact on chronicity and severity of disease. She is particularly interested in integrating bioinformatics and immunology tools to uncover mechanisms of immune dysregulation in pediatric ITP.
