Laura Schuettpelz, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology/Oncology

Dr. Laura Schuettpelz was born and raised in Boulder, Colorado. After graduating from Creighton University with degrees in biology and psychology, she completed a PhD in molecular biology from Northwestern University. With a desire to combine her passion for science and an interest in clinical medicine, she then pursued an MD at Northwestern University as well. During her time in Chicago, she met her husband, Eran, who works for a Chicago-based insurance claims handling firm. In exchange for taking his last name (Laura was reluctant to give up her much-easier–to-pronounce maiden name- “Graves”), Eran agreed to follow Laura wherever she felt would best serve her career goals. An avid skier, he hoped that would mean moving near her hometown in Colorado- but alas, she dragged him to….St. Louis! Initially skeptical, he has come to love the city. The pair have now lived in St. Louis for 13 years, happily raising two little Cubs fans (Brady, 12 yrs, and Cade, 9 yrs).

Laura completed her residency in pediatrics and fellowship in hematology/oncology here at SLCH/WUSM, and joined the faculty in 2012. During her fellowship, she worked in the laboratory of Dr. Daniel Link as a fellow of the Pediatric Scientist Development Program. In July 2013, she opened her own independent lab in the McDonnell Pediatric Research Building. Her lab uses mouse models to study the effects of inflammatory signals on both normal and premalignant hematopoietic stem cells. In particular, they are interested in the role of toll like receptor signaling in the pathogenesis of myelodysplastic syndromes. Her work is currently supported by the Children’s Discovery Institute, as well as the NIH (NHLBI) and the American Cancer Society. Laura’s clinical focus is on hematopoietic malignancies, and she co-directs the new high-risk hematopoietic malignancies (HRHM) clinic at SLCH. In addition, she serves as the Associate Director for the pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship program.

Outside of work, Laura enjoys dancing (she started taking tap and hip-hop lessons just a few years ago) and spending time with her boys. Brady and Cade are both actively involved in basketball, baseball and soccer, and evenings and weekends are typically chock full of games and practices. The Schuettpelz family likes watching the Cubs whenever they come to town, and they also look forward to their annual pilgrimage to Colorado to ski over spring break.