Notice
UW Health recently identified and investigated a security incident regarding select patients’ information.Learn more
About
Christian Capitini, MD, is a UW Health Kids pediatric hematologist oncologist and an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, where he serves as chief of the Division of Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant. He provides care for children of all ages who have blood disorders and diseases, including cancer.
The young patients Dr. Capitini sees have abnormal lab values. These can be low neutrophils (type of white blood cell), low platelets (pieces of cells found in blood), low hemoglobin (protein in red blood cells that carry oxygen) and cancer. He works to identify and treat these conditions using advanced technologies.
Dr. Capitini has a special clinical interest in pediatric bone marrow transplant, which can cure certain types of pediatric cancer. He’s also interested in cellular therapy, an emerging technology that uses car-T cells to recognize and fight leukemia and potentially other cancers.
Dr. Capitini is very active in finding new treatments to fight pediatric cancer. He leads an NHI-supported research laboratory that studies immunotherapy of childhood cancer (using the body’s immune system to recognize and fight cancer) and conducts clinical trials, providing access to the latest in emerging treatment options.
Outside of work, Dr. Capitini enjoys stand-up comedy, traveling and spending time with family.
We bring our patients the latest, most cutting-edge treatments available in pediatric cancer.
Languages spoken
- English
- Spanish
University affiliation
Practice locations
Education & credentials
Board certifications
- Pediatric Hematology-Oncology
Medical School
- University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY
Fellowships
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD and National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD
Residencies
- University of Minnesota Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN
Specialties
Conditions
Treatments
Additional conditions and treatments
- Bone Marrow Biopsy
- Chemotherapy
- Immunotherapy
- Lumbar Puncture
- Pediatric Bleeding Disorders
- Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant
Research & publications
Dr. Capitini focuses his research on using allogeneic bone marrow transplant to cure pediatric cancers. The goal of this research is two-fold: to improve graft-vs.-tumor effects using immunotherapies that have potential to be translated into the clinic, and to reduce or eliminate graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) through modulation of antigen presenting cells. Ongoing laboratory work is combining NK cells expanded with costimulatory molecules and gamma (c) cytokines with antibodies to stimulate NK cell proliferation and activation against several pediatric tumors in the alloBMT setting. He is also developing MRI techniques to monitor NK cells in vivo. Clinically, Dr. Capitini is a site investigator for clinical trials studying chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T cells for relapsed leukemia. Learn more about Dr. Capitini's research at http://www.pediatrics.wisc.edu/research/research-groups/capitini.