The Transplant and Oncology Infectious Diseases (TOID) Program

The comprehensive Transplant and Oncology Infectious Diseases (TOID) program was launched in 2008. The mission of the TOID Program, directed by Dr. Kieren Marr, is to expand institutional expertise in clinical and academic activities focused on infectious complications in transplant (solid organ and stem cell) and oncology patients at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. In addition to clinical expertise (see below), key efforts are currently directed to developing standardized algorithms for prevention and treatment of infections in these patient populations and to establish an expanded infrastructure to facilitate clinical and translational studies in TOID.

The clinical transplant and oncology service, named the Tucker Service, is dedicated to the scholarship and spirit of Dr. Pamela C. Tucker, who served as teacher and mentor, and advocate and healer to patients with infectious diseases, particularly in the fields of transplant and oncology, before her untimely death in November, 2000. The goal of this service is to provide comprehensive inpatient and outpatient care for medically immunocompromised patients at Johns Hopkins. The Tucker Service sees oncology patients in the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, located at 401 North Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21231. The Pamela Cresson Tucker Scholarship Award was established to honor Dr. Tucker's memory by her friends and family. Additional information on the life and career of Dr. Tucker as well as how to apply for a scholarship award or to donate are available at The Pamela Tucker Foundation.

The TOID program currently includes three full-time attending physicians and a nurse practitioner specializing in infectious disease care of medically immunocompromised patients.  Dr. Kieren Marr, Professor of Medicine and Oncology and TOID Program Director, trained at Hahnemann University, Duke University and the University of Washington / Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, where she was on faculty for several years before relocation.  Dr. Marr is a member of several national and international professional organizations, numerous national scientific steering committees, has authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications and textbook chapters, and edited two books in the area of infectious diseases involving immunosuppressed hosts. She directs the TOID Infectious Diseases clinical research infrastructure (described below) and serves as the Liaison between the Department of Medicine and the Carey Business School, focused on technology development. Dr. Shmuel Shoham, Assistant Professor of Medicine, trained at Thomas Jefferson and Boston Universities. He joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins in April, 2011, after ten years at Washington Hospital Center, where he was Scientific Director of the MedStar Clinical Research Center and headed the Transplant Infectious Diseases service. Dr. Shoham has multiple years of experience in conducting research studies as both principle investigator and co-investigator. He has published and lectured extensively on infections in transplant recipients and has been an active member in the American Society of Transplantation. Dr. Dionissios Neofytos, Assistant Professor of Medicine, received his training at the University of Athens Medical School, and Thomas Jefferson University before relocating to JHU. Dr. Neofytos also has multiple years experience conducting research studies, most recently focusing on epidemiology and outcomes of fungal infections.

Training in TOID is a large focus of the program. Since development, Johns Hopkins has been recognized as a primary training site for TOID, and has hosted numerous visiting clinicians for electives in the subspecialty, from both US and international hospitals. A formal curriculum of training at multiple levels is under development.

The clinical research infrastructure of the TOID program is managed by Darin Ostrander, PhD. Dr. Ostrander has more than twenty years experience in antimicrobial pharmaceutical research and development. He is an experienced research protocol analyst who regularly assists young faculty and fellows in the planning, submission, and execution of clinical and translational studies. The clinical research group employs three full-time clinical research coordinators, a database specialist, and an administrative coordinator. The clinical research efforts include a) the design, implementation, and execution of investigator-initiated and sponsored clinical trials; b) development and management of a prospective cohort study of transplant recipients to facilitate analysis of risk factors and outcomes of infectious complications; and c) the creation of the administrative infrastructure used by ID and ID-associated investigators and fellows for the funding, approval, implementation, and reporting of clinical and translational studies.