Fellow Spotlight: Eli Grunblatt, MD, PhD

Eli Grunblatt, MD, PhD, grew up in Brooklyn, learning about science from textbooks at the public library. While earning bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and biology from Yeshiva University in New York, he worked in a breast cancer lab. He earned his medical degree and PhD from the University of Washington, Seattle, completing his dissertation on chemoresistance in small cell lung cancer.

While completing his internal medicine residency at Northwestern University, he discovered cardio-oncology – the cardiovascular care of oncology patients, before, during and after cancer treatment. Dr. Grunblatt conducted research on the heart health of breast cancer patients receiving anti-HER2 therapy, and studied cardiotoxicities of cancer patients who received CAR T-cell therapies. “I’m interested in identifying who is at most risk for developing cardiotoxicities after cancer-directed therapy,” he said.

He chose UCSF for cardiology fellowship because of its premiere research infrastructure. “The Division of Cardiology is really committed to basic cardiology research, and also has one of the best cardio-oncology infrastructures in the country,” said Dr. Grunblatt, who plans to become a cardio-oncology physician-scientist. His other interests include exploring local coffee shops and breweries and playing ice hockey.