Cristhiam M. Rojas Hernandez, M.D.
Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Division of Internal Medicine
About Dr. Cristhiam M Rojas Hernandez
Dr. Rojas Hernandez is a valedictorian graduate of the Medical School at the Universidad del Valle in Cali, Colombia. He completed an internship and residency in Internal Medicine at Yale University (Bridgeport Hospital program) where he received several awards on professionalism and medical education. Subsequently he trained as a Hematologist and Oncologist at the University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center. During his fellowship he received recognition as the Laurent T. Visconti Fellow of the Year in 2014.
Having joined MD Anderson in 2014, Rojas Hernandez also serves as the University of Texas/Mc Govern Medical School site director for the clinical rotation in Hematology & Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center. For his work in the education field, he received the 2016 Cheves M. and Isabella C. Smythe Endowed Award for Excellence in Resident Education. Additionally, he was named the Faculty Teacher of the year in 2016 by the Hematology and Oncology fellowship program, and the Faculty Educator of the month of April 2018 at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Dr. Rojas-Hernandez has research interest in the therapeutic index of anticoagulants in cancer population. He has participated in pivotal multicenter studies of cancer associated thrombosis, besides completing numerous research and narrative review manuscripts on the topic. He also has interest in the quality of life and treatment adherence to anticoagulation in cancer patients. He is the leader of an international study measuring those parameters in the cancer population (NCT03407469).
Dr. Rojas-Hernandez has developed an international reputation in the field of Cancer Associated Thrombosis; he has participated as speaker in multiple meetings of the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis, the International Conference on Thrombosis and Hemostasis Issues in Cancer, The Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, the Colombian Society of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery (SCC) and the Colombian Association of Palliative Care (ASOCUPAC).
Dr. Rojas-Hernandez also serves as faculty in the MD Anderson Immuno-Oncologic Toxicity Initiative (MDACC IOTOX). He is a contributor of the MDACC IOTOX guidelines and invited author of several publications on the topic of hematologic complications of immune check point inhibitors.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Associate Professor, Department of Section Benign Hematology, Division of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2005 | Universidad del Valle, Cali, COL, MD, Medical School |
Postgraduate Training
| 2011-2014 | Clinical Fellowship, Hematology and Oncology, The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM |
| 2008-2011 | Clinical Residency, Internal Medicine, Yale University (Bridgeport Hospital), Bridgeport, CT |
Board Certifications
| 2014 | American Board of Internal Medicine (Hematology) |
| 2014 | American Board of Internal Medicine (Medical Oncology) |
| 2011 | American Board of Internal Medicine |
Honors & Awards
| 2022 | 2022 Outstanding Study Group Award: Hemostasis Study Group, The Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer |
| 2018 | Faculty Educator of the Month-April 2018, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2016 | Cheves M. and Isabella C. Smythe Endowment Award for Excellence in Resident Education, The University of Texas in Houston Department of Internal Medicine |
| 2016 | Teacher of the Year, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Division of Cancer Medicine |
| 2016 | 2016 Teacher of the Year for the Hematology Oncology Fellowship Program, Division of Cancer Medicine at MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2015 | Eberhard Mammen Seminars in Thrombosis and Haemostasis 2015 Most Popular Article Awards for Open Access Category, Seminars in Thrombosis and Haemostasis |
| 2014 | The Laurent T. Visconti Teaching Fellow of the Year, The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center |
| 2011 | The Raymond Haddad, MD Award for Outstanding Professionalism, Yale University (Bridgeport Hospital) |
| 2011 | The American Cancer Society Resident Screening Award, The American Cancer Society |
| 2010 | The Director's Award for Outstanding Teaching, Yale University (Bridgeport Hospital) |
| 2005 | Valedictorian Award, Universidad del Valle School of Medicine |
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Li A, De Las Pozas G, Andersen CR, Nze CC, Toale KM, Milner EM, Fillmore NR, Chiao EY, Rojas Hernandez C, Kroll MH, Merriman KW, Flowers CR. External validation of a novel electronic risk score for cancer-associated thrombosis in a comprehensive cancer center. Am J Hematol 98(7):1052-1057, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37067102.
- Babakhanlou R, Verstovsek S, Pemmaraju N, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Secondary erythrocytosis. Expert Rev Hematol 16(4):1-7, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 36927204.
- Qiao W, Young E, Feng C, Liu S, Jin J, Noor L, Rojas Hernandez CM, Borthakur G, Gorlova O, Afshar-Kharghan V. Association between abnormal lipid profile and inflammation and progression of myelodysplastic syndrome to acute leukemia. Exp Hematol Oncol 11(1):58, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36114519.
- Qdaisat A, Wechsler AH, Cruz Carreras MT, Menendez JR, Lipe D, Highsmith EA, Kamal M, Al-Breiki A, Rojas Hernandez CM, Wu CC, Yeung SJ. Concomitant Deep Vein Thrombosis in Cancer Patients with Unsuspected Pulmonary Embolism. Cancers (Basel) 14(18), 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36139673.
- Tsoukalas N, Brito-Dellan N, Font C, Butler T, Rojas-Hernandez CM, Butler T, Escalante C, MASCC Hemostasis Study Group. Complexity and clinical significance of drug-drug interactions (DDIs) in oncology: challenging issues in the care of patients regarding cancer-associated thrombosis (CAT). Support Care Cancer. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35932318.
- Li A, Martens KL, Nguyen D, Basom R, Rondon G, Jin S, Young E, Amos CI, Lee SJ, Davis C, Garcia DA, Champlin R, Shpall E, Kebriaei P, Rojas Hernandez C. External Validation of the HIGH-2-LOW Model: A Predictive Score for Venous Thromboembolism after Allogeneic Transplant. Am J Hematol 97(6):740-748, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35266218.
- Nelson BE, Ejezie CL, Stephen BA, Nardo M, Campbell E, Gong J, Hong DS, Fu S, Yap TA, Murphy MB, Piha-Paul S, Daver NG, Rojas-Hernandez CM, Naing A. Spectrum of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Anemias: Results From a Single Center, Early-Phase Clinical Trials Case Series Experience. J Hematol 11(3):113-120, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35837373.
- Madani M, Goldstein D, Stefanescu R, Woodman SE, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Characterization of coagulopathy and outcomes in cancer patients with severe COVID -19 illness: Longitudinal changes in hospitalized cancer patients. Cancer Med. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35470980.
- Barrios-Ruiz A, Davila-Gonzalez D, Fountain E, Cheng L, Verstovsek S, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Potential limitations of diagnostic standard codes to distinguish polycythemia vera and secondary erythrocytosis. Sci Rep 12(1):4674, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35304527.
- Wilson NR, Lockhart JR, Garcia-Perdomo HA, Oo TH, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Management and Outcomes of Hematological Immune-related Adverse Events: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. J Immunother 45(1):13-24, 2022. PMID: 34469413.
- Qdaisat A, Yeung SJ, Rojas Hernandez CH, Samudrala P, Kamal M, Li Z, Wechsler AH. Characteristics and Outcomes of Intracranial Hemorrhage in Cancer Patients Visiting the Emergency Department. J Clin Med 11(3), 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35160096.
- Kroll MH, Yee C, Rojas Hernandez CM. Hematologic complications of immune checkpoint inhibitors. Blood. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34610113.
- Abelhad NI, Qiao W, Garg N, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Thrombosis and bleeding outcomes in the treatment of cerebral venous thrombosis in cancer. Thromb J 19(1):37, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34074321.
- Martens KL, Amos CI, Hernandez CR, Kebriaei P, da Costa WL, Basom R, Davis C, Kesten M, Carrier M, Garcia DA, Lee SJ, Li A. Impact of anticoagulation on recurrent thrombosis and bleeding after hematopoietic cell transplantation. Am J Hematol. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34097772.
- Goswamy RV, Wilson NR, Tannenbaum DJ, Aung FM, Hernandez CMR. Practice patterns and clinical outcomes of platelet alloimmunization in a comprehensive cancer center. Transfus Apher Sci 60(3):103096, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 33612449.
- Davila-Gonzalez D, Barrios-Ruiz A, Fountain E, Cheng L, Masarova L, Verstovsek S, Rojas-Hernandez CM. DIAGNOSTIC PERFORMANCE OF ERYTHROPOIETIN LEVELS IN POLYCYTHEMIA VERA: EXPERIENCE AT A COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CENTER. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk 21(4):224-229, 2021. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 33349602.
- Yan M, Kieser R, Wu CC, Qiao W, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Clinical factors and outcomes of subsegmental pulmonary embolism in cancer patients. Blood Adv 5(4):1050-1058, 2021. PMID: 33599740.
- Wilson N, Khan M, Cox TM, Nassif M, Qiao W, Garg N, Aung FM, Oo TH, Rojas‐Hernandez CM. Bleeding outcomes in thrombocytopenic acute leukemic patients with venous thromboembolism. EJHaem:1-9, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 35845011.
- Alcedo P , Garcia Perdomo HA, Rojas-Hernandez CM. The net benefit of thrombolysis in the management of intermediate risk pulmonary embolism: Systematic review and meta‐analysis. EJHaem, 2020. PMID: 35844995.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Tang VK, Sanchez-Petitto G, Qiao W, Richardson M, Escalante C. Development of a clinical prediction tool for cancer-associated venous thromboembolism (CAT): the MD Anderson Cancer Center CAT model. Support Care Cancer 28(8):3755-3761, 2020. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31828489.
- Abdel-Wahab N, Tayar JH, Fa'ak F, Sharma G, Lopez-Olivo MA, Yousif A, Shagroni T, Al-Hawamdeh S, Rojas-Hernandez CM, Suarez-Almazor ME. Systematic review of observational studies reporting antiphospholipid antibodies in patients with solid tumors. Blood Adv 4(8):1746-1755, 2020. PMID: 32337583.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Oo TH. Direct Oral Anticoagulants in the Prevention and Treatment of Venous Thromboembolism in Patients with Cancer: New Insights from Randomized Controlled Trials. Drugs:1-11. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 30905033.
- Qdaisat A, Al Soud R, Wu CC, Rojas Hernandez CM, Li J, Meng QH, Abdel-Razeq H, Yeung SJ. Poor performance of D-Dimer in excluding venous thromboembolism among patients with lymphoma and leukemia. Haematologica. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 30630988.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Zapata-Copete JA, García-Perdomo HA. Role of vena cava filters for the management of cancer-related venous thromboembolism: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol 130:44-50, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30196911.
- Kraaijpoel N, Di Nisio M, Mulder FI, van Es N, Beyer-Westendorf J, Carrier M, Garcia D, Grosso M, Kakkar AK, Mercuri MF, Middeldorp S, Hernandez CR, Santamaria A, Schwocho L, Segers A, Verhamme P, Wang TF, Weitz JI, Zhang G, Zwicker JI, Büller HR, Raskob GE. Clinical Impact of Bleeding in Cancer-Associated Venous Thromboembolism: Results from the Hokusai VTE Cancer Study. Thromb Haemost 118(8):1439-1449, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30060256.
- Hasanov M, Konoplev SN, Hernandez CMR. Nivolumab-induced cold agglutinin syndrome successfully treated with rituximab. Blood Adv 2(15):1865-1868, 2018. PMID: 30072374.
- Khan M, Cox TM, Nassif M, Alzubaidi MA, Garg N, Qiao W, Aung FM, Oo TH, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Comparative outcomes of thrombocytopenic acute leukemic patients with venous thromboembolism at a Comprehensive Cancer Center. J Thromb Thrombolysis 45(3):377-385, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29417408.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM. The role of direct oral anticoagulants in cancer-related venous thromboembolism: a perspective beyond the guidelines. Support Care Cancer 26(3):711-720, 2018. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29188376.
- Sun Y, Lee SK, Oo TH, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Management of Immune-mediated Cytopenias in the Era of Cancer Immunotherapy: A Report of 4 Cases. J Immunother 41(1):32-34, 2018. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 29111982.
- Daver N, McClain K, Allen CE, Parikh SA, Otrock Z, Rojas-Hernandez C, Blechacz B, Wang S, Minkov M, Jordan MB, La Rosée P, Kantarjian HM. A consensus review on malignancy-associated hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in adults. Cancer 123(17):3229-3240, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28621800.
- Oo TH, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Challenging clinical presentations of pernicious anemia. Discov Med 24(131):107-115, 2017. PMID: 28972879.
- Wong M, Oo TH, Qiao W, Garg N, Rojas-Hernandez CM. Performance of 4T score and heparin-platelet factor 4 antibody in the diagnosis of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) in cancer. J Thromb Thrombolysis 44(2):261-266, 2017. PMID: 28677022.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Oo TH, García-Perdomo HA. Risk of intracranial hemorrhage associated with therapeutic anticoagulation for venous thromboembolism in cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Thromb Thrombolysis 43(2):233-240, 2017. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27704333.
- Ross JA, Miller MM, Rojas Hernandez CM. Comparative effectiveness and safety of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) versus conventional anticoagulation for the treatment of cancer-related venous thromboembolism: A retrospective analysis. Thromb Res 150:86-89, 2017. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 28064037.
- Rojas Hernandez CM, Oo TH. Advances in mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment of pernicious anemia. Discov Med 19(104):159-68, 2015. PMID: 25828519.
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Garcia DA. The novel oral anticoagulants. Semin Thromb Hemost 39(2):117-26, 2013. e-Pub 2013. PMID: 23390028.
Book Chapters
- Oo TH, Rojas-Hernandez, CM. Hematology chapter. In: Managing Immunotherapy Related Organ Toxicities: A Practical Guide. 1. Springer Cham, 322, 2022.
- Alcedo PE, Sanchez-Petitto G, Rojas-Hernandez C. Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. In: The 5-Minute Clinical Consult. 27. Wolters Kluwer, 2019.
Letters to the Editor
- Rojas-Hernandez CM, Oo TH, García-Perdomo HA. A meta-analysis of intracranial hemorrhage in patients with brain tumors receiving therapeutic anticoagulation: comment. J Thromb Haemost 14: 2080-2081, 2016.