Academic History
Maria Domenica Cappellini, MD, is a Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Milan, Milan, Italy, and the Chief of the Rare Diseases Center at the Policlinico Foundation, Milan, Italy.
After obtaining an MD from the University of Milan, Prof. Cappellini underwent specialized training in Gastroenterology and Hematology. She has also had training at the Pasteur Institut, Paris, France and in the Department of Genetics at the University of Leiden, Leiden, The Netherlands. She has been a Research Fellow in the Molecular Hematology Unit at MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Oxford University & John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK.
Prof. Cappellini is a Member of the Italian Society of Hematology and the Italian Society of Internal Medicine, as well as a Member of the Editorial Board of Haematologica.
Speaking on thalassemia, SCD, and anemia
Prof. Cappellini’s research focuses on hereditary disorders of red blood cells, including thalassemia, sickle cell disease (SCD), and anemias. Her work delves into the phenotypic expression of thalassemia major and intermedia, evaluating genotype-phenotype relationships and modifier gene co-inheritance. Prof. Cappellini has identified mechanisms underlying thrombotic risks in thalassemia intermedia and explores molecules capable of inducing fetal hemoglobin for therapeutic applications. She has also played a pivotal role in the development of the Phase III BELIEVE trial (NCT02604433) investigating luspatercept in the treatment of transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia.
