Our mission is to train the next generation of physician-scientist leaders, who represent a rich spectrum of clinical disciplines and research areas from basic and translational sciences to bioengineering to the social sciences.

Following the termination of our NIH Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) grants, the HMS community united to provide vital support for our more than 200 MD-PhD students who depend on this funding. This extraordinary fundraising effort was amplified by two $100,000 matching gifts from MD-PhD alumni, and nearly half of all contributions came from first-time donors to the program.

MD-PhD Program Director Loren Walensky, MD, PhD, appeared on CNN to highlight the profound impact federal funding cuts are having on research and training at Harvard. He stressed that scientists nationwide are dedicated to developing life-saving cures and treatments, and warned that terminating these essential grants could jeopardize the future of medical innovation and patient care.

​Ally Questell is dedicated to cancer immunology research, aspiring to help create a future where cancer is no longer a life-altering diagnosis for millions of Americans. However, in May, the federal grant supporting her MD-PhD training at Harvard was discontinued.

“Physician-scientists are uniquely positioned to take problems that they see in the clinic, bring them back to the lab to devise solutions, and then translate that back to the clinic to improve patient lives,” she says.

She worries that unless federal funding for Harvard’s MD-PhD training is renewed, aspiring physician-scientists may lose access to vital opportunities. 

Recent Harvard MD-PhD graduate Dan Michelson’s research reveals how the thymus, a small gland located in the chest, creates miniature versions of organs for T cells to “preview” so that they know friend from foe. Michelson’s findings deepen our understanding of autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, with implications for therapies that strengthen the immune system and treat cancer.

HMS MD-PhD student Sayo Eweje is developing innovative protein-based nanoparticle systems to deliver RNA and protein therapies directly to patients’ cells, aiming to make cutting-edge treatments more effective and accessible. His research at the intersection of biomedical engineering and clinical medicine opens new possibilities for treating diseases ranging from genetic disorders to cancer. Driven by a passion for  expanding opportunity, Eweje also mentors local high school students and helps lead initiatives to improve health care access in underserved communities.

When Vijay Sankaran was an MD-PhD student at Harvard Medical School, a patient inspired him to investigate the genetics of sickle cell disease alongside his mentor, Stuart H. Orkin MD ’72, in a laboratory at Boston Children’s Hospital. 

Beginning with a landmark report in 2008, the lab published a series of studies that ultimately revealed how editing a single gene, BCL11A, with CRISPR/Cas9 technology can restore healthy hemoglobin production and ameliorate sickle cell disease. Significant challenges remained in turning this discovery into a safe and effective gene therapy for patients. That’s when CRISPR Therapeutics and Vertex Pharmaceuticals stepped in. 

In this video, Orkin, the HMS David G. Nathan Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics at Boston Children’s and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Sankaran, the HMS Jan Ellen Paradise, MD Professor of Pediatrics at Boston Children’s; and David Altshuler MD ’94, PhD ’94, executive vice president and chief scientific officer at Vertex and senior lecturer on genetics, part-time, at HMS, share the story of how these basic discoveries became a first-of-its-kind FDA-approved therapy, CASGEVY, that promises to have a monumental impact on sickle cell disease patients worldwide.

In November 2024, the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program marked its 50th anniversary with a campus symposium and celebration. Highlights included remarks from President of Harvard University Alan Garber AB ’77, AM ’77, PhD ’82, MD, and HMS Dean George Q. Daley, AB ’82, MD ’91, PhD, and a keynote address by former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Anthony Fauci, MD, on the vital role of physician-scientists; students, alumni, and faculty reconnected and celebrated together over dinner and dancing. 

David Altshuler is the executive vice president of global research and chief scientific officer at Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Since Altshuler joined Vertex as chief scientific officer in 2015, the company has made significant progress in bringing new medicines to patients living with cystic fibrosis and other serious diseases. Altshuler developed and implemented Vertex’s R&D strategy and is responsible for shaping the company’s pipeline targeting diseases including cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease, beta thalassemia, pain, type 1 diabetes, APOL1 mediated kidney disease, and IgA neuropathy.  

Prior to joining Vertex, Altshuler was a founding core member, deputy director and chief academic officer at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. He also served as a professor of genetics and medicine at HMS, adjunct professor of biology at MIT, and a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital. His academic laboratory led the three major projects that characterized and catalogued human genetic variation—the SNP Consortium, HapMap, and 1,000 Genome Projects—and pioneered the methods and practice of genetic analysis of common human diseases. His lab discovered hundreds of gene variants associated with diabetes, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases, and cancer. He continues to teach as a senior lecturer in genetics and medicine at MGH and Harvard. 

In addition to his teaching and mentorship, Altshuler and his wife, Jill, are providing opportunities to the next generation of physician-scientists through their philanthropy in support of the program. 

“Combined MD-PhD training provides an invaluable perspective on how science can address human suffering,” says David Altshuler. “Jill and I can’t think of a better use for our philanthropy than to help expand opportunities for these remarkable students to grow and contribute  in the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD program.”