Daniel Hailu Kefenie is a trailblazer in pediatric hematology-oncology in Ethiopia. As the country’s first physician formally trained in this specialty, he has played a foundational role in shaping pediatric cancer care and training at Addis Ababa University’s College of Health Sciences, where he currently serves as assistant professor and senior pediatric hematologist-oncologist.
After earning his medical degree in 1996 and completing a pediatric residency in 2004, Kefenie pursued a two-year fellowship in pediatric hematology-oncology through Addis Ababa University, which included specialized training at the Tata Memorial Center in Mumbai. He has since continued to build his expertise through a hemophilia fellowship at KEM Hospital and a yearlong advanced fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto.
From 2015 to 2020, he led the Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Unit at AAU and has since taken on several leadership roles, including PHO fellowship coordinator and chair of his department’s Research and Publication Committee. He currently leads the East African SIOP Research Committee and serves on the African Cancer Coalition Advisory Team, where he works to elevate research and care standards across the continent.
With more than 30 publications to his name, Kefenie’s research spans acute lymphoblastic leukemia, solid tumors, pediatric neuro-oncology, cancer registries, cost analyses, treatment abandonment, and fellowship training in low- and middle-income countries. His academic contributions have been featured at numerous international conferences hosted by SIOP and the American Cancer Society.
Now, as a student in the Global Child Health master’s program at the St. Jude Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Kefenie aims to further develop the leadership, systems-thinking, and research tools needed to improve pediatric cancer outcomes across Africa. He is especially interested in quality and safety in PHO services, workforce development, and collaborative innovations that will shape the next chapter of childhood cancer care in resource-limited settings.
Hometown: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Education:
2018 - Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship – University of Toronto
2015 - Hemophilia Fellowship – KEM Hospital
2015 - Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship – Addis Ababa University
2004 - Pediatric Residency – Addis Ababa University
1996 - Medical Degree – Addis Ababa University
Publications:
Mizan Kiros Mirutse, Mieraf Taddesse Tolla, Solomon Tessema Memirie, Michael Tekle Palm, Daniel Hailu,..& Ole F. Norheim .The magnitude and perceived reasons for childhood cancer treatment abandonment in Ethiopia: from health care providers’ perspective. BMC Health Serv Res 22, 1014 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-08188-8 (Citations : 25)