Children’s Minnesota is pleased to announce Dr. Susan Kearney as the new medical director of the cancer and blood disorders program as of July 1, 2021. Dr. Yoav Messinger, who has acted as medical director of the cancer and blood disorders program since 2016, is passing the baton to Dr. Kearney and will continue to practice medicine at Children’s Minnesota. Dr. Kearney joined the Children’s Minnesota team in 2010 and has been an amazing addition ever since.
Dr. Kearney was born in Canada and obtained her Bachelor of Science degree at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. She received her Medical Doctorate degree from the Mayo Medical School in Rochester, Minnesota. She then moved to Boston for her pediatric residency and her pediatric hematology oncology fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
Get to know Dr. Kearney
What inspired you to become a clinician?
Dr. Kearney’s mom initially inspired her to become a clinician. As a child, her mother dreamed of becoming a doctor but she was told she couldn’t because she was female. When Dr. Kearney was a teenager, she was a lifeguard, and quickly realized that helping others in times of crisis was a calling for her as well.
What keeps you passionate about your work?
Dr. Kearney enjoys the relationships that she builds with her patients and their families. She’s passionate about teaching her patients about how to manage their disease while not being defined by it. Advancements in medicine and the cancer and blood disorders field itself help her stay inspired as well.
What are you academic interests?
Her academic interests are in pediatric bleeding and clotting disorders as well as bone marrow failure disorders. She has served as the medical director of the Children’s Minnesota Center for Bleeding and Clotting Disorders for over seven years. In that capacity, she participated as a principal investigator in many clinical trials. The advancements in medicine are exciting and instill hope for a better future for many of our patients living with chronic disease.
What do you love most about your job?
Dr. Kearney loves her patients! She learns from them each and every day. Their resiliency, strength and determination are inspirational. She feels that getting to know a child and their family is such an honor – it’s her favorite part of her work. As the new leader for the cancer and blood disorders program, she’s excited to empower fellow clinicians to continue their own journey helping patients and their families with cancer and blood disorders.
Children’s Minnesota Cancer and Blood Disorders program
Children’s Minnesota understands there are times when clinicians need to partner with additional medical experts. We know how the urgency for these clinical resources drastically multiplies with a cancer or blood disorder diagnosis. When moments matter — Children’s Minnesota has the unique expertise and the resources in hematology and oncology to help your patients. Within our cancer and blood disorders program, our team of specialists and subspecialists work both together and independently to treat kids and young adults facing a wide variety of serious conditions, all within a single health system. We’re here — and we’re ready to help. We will partner with you all the way.
Learn more about the Children’s Minnesota cancer and blood disorders program.
