As ASBMR President-Elect, Laura Calvi Looks to Expand Connections Among Scientists

Laura Calvi, M.D., a leader at the Wilmot Cancer Institute and the University of Rochester Medical Center Department of Medicine, has been voted president-elect of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).

Calvi will begin a three-year leadership role at ASBMR on Sept. 12, 2022, first as president-elect, then as president and immediate past president. The professional organization consists of approximately 4,000 basic research scientists and clinical investigators who focus on bone and mineral metabolism and related fields.

Calvi’s research interests include study of the cell and tissue interactions that take place between the bone marrow microenvironment and blood stem cells, where cancer arises. Her team is also investigating treatments that may expand the population of healthy blood stem cells so that older adults, whose marrow is failing, can regain an adequate blood supply.

Calvi describes ASBMR as her “scientific home” where she for years has connected with mentors, peers, and trainees. As ASBMR president, she plans to expand on-demand access to the organization’s educational lectures and workshops to members and possibly to the public, and to promote opportunities for volunteer participation, especially by early-career and international scientists.

She wears many hats at URMC, including vice chair of basic and translational research in Medicine, co-leader of Wilmot’s Cancer Microenvironment research program, and as an active mentor to trainees at all levels.

A native of Torino, Italy, Calvi received her degree from Harvard Medical School and trained there for several years before joining the faculty at UR and the Center for Musculoskeletal Research. She is passionate about the translation of science, education, and team-building, to bring basic science into the realm of clinical research faster. Her lab is funded by the National Institute on Aging with two recent grants totaling approximately $4 million, NASA, and the Taub and Evans Foundations.

At the UR, Calvi is a professor of Medicine, of Pharmacology and Physiology, of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and of Neurology, and holds the SKAWA Foundation Professorship in Endocrinology and Metabolism.