In school, Hamoud Al-Hussaini was passionate about art, history, writing, and language, but his destiny was to become a pediatrician. He discovered a love for children and wanted to do anything he could to alleviate their suffering. He received a governmental scholarship to study medicine, specifically pediatrics, providing much-needed expertise in a country facing a shortage of health professionals. He believes that if one’s intentions are good and sincere, God will choose the best of fates. Over the course of his training and work experience, he became especially passionate about pediatric hematology and oncology.
Dr. Al-Hussaini earned his medical degree in Pediatrics in 1998 from St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical Academy (now University) in St. Petersburg, Russian Federation. He participated in a pediatrics residency program from 2001 to 2004 in Sana’a at Al-Thawra Teaching Hospital in Sana’a, Yemen. He later completed a Master of Science in Pediatric Oncology in 2007 from the Russian Academy for Postgraduate Education (Scientific Research Institute of Pediatric Oncology &Hematology, N.N.Blokhin Russian Cancer Research) in Moscow, Russian Federation.
In 2013, he completed a pediatric oncology fellowship at the Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences, National Cancer Center in Seoul, South Korea; during his fellowship, he focused on cancer prevention and early detection and bone marrow and stem-cell transplantation.
During his Pediatrics residency, Dr. Al-Hussaini rotated in all divisions of the pediatric department, including the hematology/oncology unit. This unit was the only dedicated unit for the treatment of benign and malignancy disorders in children with the only pediatric hematologist in country; he treated patients with sickle cell disease, Thalassemia, all types of anemia, leukemias and solid tumors. He pursued specialized training in pediatric oncology through a Master of Science degree and through additional training with the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and European School of Oncology (ESO). In 2015, Dr. Al-Hussaini received an International Development and Education Award (IDEA) by Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Dr. Al-Hussaini currently works in the National Oncology Center where he is the head of the Pediatric Oncology department. After completing his training, he helped established the pediatric oncology unit at the National Oncology Center. Children with cancer, primarily solid tumors and lymphomas, were previously being treated by adult medical oncologist and radiotherapists. He sought administrative support to establish separate rooms for children. With the support of St. Jude and Dr. Sima Jeha, he successfully established and became the head of the pediatric oncology unit, which has grown from four beds and four staff members to a twenty-two bedded department with eleven staff members.
“I believe that the MSc in Global Child Health will bring benefits in the form of gaining experiences in leadership, communication skills, management, health system policies and strategies, research, and integration in the global events to change the life of our children to the best which they deserve. And, of course, St. Jude is a diverse place where staff from different countries work together with one goal to save the lives of children with cancer and give them the chance to be cured in any place they are in and receive the same service with high quality. St. Jude is the small globe for the big globe.”
Hometown: Sana’a, Yemen
Education
MD, Pediatrics – Saint-Petersburg State Pediatric Medical Academy (currently University), St. Petersburg, Russian Federation (1998)
MSc, Pediatric Oncology – Russian Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, Scientific Research Institute of Pediatric Oncology & Hematology, N.N.Blokhin Russian Cancer Research Center RAMS, Moscow, Russian Federation (2007)
Fellowship, Pediatric Oncology – Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences, National Cancer Center in Seoul, South Korea (2013)
Publications
Saab R, Obeid A, Gachi F, et al. Impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on pediatric oncology care in the Middle East, North Africa, and West Asia region: A report from the Pediatric Oncology East and Mediterranean (POEM) group. Cancer. 126(18):4235-4245, 2020.
Global Retinoblastoma Study Group, Fabian ID, Abdallah E, et al. Global Retinoblastoma Presentation and Analysis by National Income Level. JAMA Oncol. 6(5):685-695, 2020.
Alhussaini, H., Igoshin, A., Koshechkina, N., et al. 2007. DIAGNOSTIC METHODS OF PRIMARY MALIGNANT TUMORS OF RIBS IN CHILDREN: PE. 024. Pediatric Blood & Cancer, 49(4), 2007.