KC Business Journal: Children's Mercy doctor sees genomics easing suffering, families' anxiety

Photo: Dr. Elin Grundberg & Dr. Tomi Pastinen, Children's Mercy

by Elise Reuter

Dr. Tomi Pastinen’s insistence on finding answers brought him to lead the Center for Pediatric Genomic Medicine at Children’s Mercy. After building an 18-year career at McGill University in Montreal, the prospect of using his research to directly help patients lured Pastinen to Kansas City in July.

“What we couldn’t do there that I can do here is walk up to a clinician and ask, ‘What sort of problems do you have in your clinic?’” Pastinen said.

Back in Helsinki, Finland, where Pastinen was born, the same motivation drew him to genomics as a hopeful university student. Originally, Pastinen wanted to pursue physics and chemistry, but his family persuaded him to pursue a degree in medicine.

“I always felt that I’m a science geek,” he said. “I just love data.”

Read the full article via the Kansas City Business Journal.

Learn more about the Center for Pediatric Genomic Medicine at Children's Mercy.

Learn more about Children's Mercy's Children's Research Institute.