Neonatologist Thomas Michael Raffay, MD, FAAP, Breaks New Ground as a Clinician-Scientist to Positively Impact the Lives of Babies with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia

UH Research & Education Update | May 2025

Thomas Michael Raffay, MD, FAAP, is a self-described “Cleveland kid” who grew up in the city’s West Park neighborhood. He now excels as a neontologist and scientist, dedicated to advancing the treatment of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), a chronic lung condition that affects infants born prematurely.

Thomas Raffay, MD, FAAP

Dr. Raffay is part of the Division of Neonatology and Perinatal Medicine at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s, and an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. In his research, he is looking for therapeutic targets to address the underlying causes of BPD, a condition diagnosed in more than 10,000 infants in the United States annually, with an estimated cost exceeding $2.5 billion.

“My research examines chronic lung problems, airway problems, and cardiovascular problems that babies born prematurely develop during their time in the ICU, and even in early childhood,” says Dr. Raffay, who splits his time evenly between science and medicine. “I use newborn mouse models to create some of the long-term issues our premature babies have and test new therapies.”

His lab has identified a potential new therapeutic candidate for the lung, airway, and cardiovascular issues that develop because of BPD, and is developing a potential therapy. Supported by a prestigious R01 $2.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Raffay is building upon a near decade of pre-clinical research, which showed that neonatal hyperoxia, a condition found in the NICU, causes the beneficial bronchodilator and antioxidant GSNO to be catabolized in the lungs by the enzyme GSNO reductase (GSNOR).

Additionally, using mouse models, Dr. Raffay determined that editing out the GSNOR enzyme reduces complications associated with BPD. He and his lab team also found that airway hyper-reactivity, often experienced by BPD patients, can be reversed with inhaled GSNO, or a GSNOR inhibitor, which has been studied in Phase 1 clinical trials for asthma and cystic fibrosis.

With the new NIH grant, Dr. Raffay and his team are more closely examining molecular mechanisms and how protection occurs in GSNOR knockout mice to better understand the role of GSNOR in the lung epithelia and myeloid cells. They are also testing pharmacologic GSNO and GSNOR-based therapies.

Motivated to Combine Science and Medicine to Maximize Patient Benefit

Dr. Raffay was drawn to becoming a clinician-scientist by the opportunity to help patients and families wrestling with a lung disease that affects premature infants but can persist in their teens and 20s. Throughout his career trajectory, science and medicine have always been intertwined.

He received his undergraduate degree in chemistry at Case Western Reserve University. As an undergraduate student, he volunteered for Child Life Services at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s, and he interned at Athersys Inc., a biotech company focused on regenerative medicine. Dr. Raffay went on to earn his medical degree at The Ohio State University College of Medicine in 2007 and completed his pediatric residency at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. Thereafter, he returned to Cleveland for his fellowship in neonatal-perinatal medicine at UH Rainbow.

It was as a resident that he first examined the effects of oxygen exposure in mice, under the guidance of Trent Tipple, MD, a physician-scientist and early mentor, who developed novel approaches to predict or prevent the development of BPD in premature infants. Working alongside him, Dr. Raffay gained insight into the molecular mechanisms of lung injury and repair, which paralleled the lung issues he saw among NICU patients during his residency training.

He continued similar research and training as a fellow and junior faculty at UH Rainbow forging a successful career path, leaning heavily on a bedside-to-bench and back again approach in neonatology, a still growing field of medicine.

“As we learn more about survival of the most premature babies, we’re kind of discovering as we go, not just scaling down what works for adults into babies, but really realizing they’re unique in their own ways, and the therapies they need would be unique, too,” says Dr. Raffay.

Research Success Rooted in Strong Mentorship: Navigating Path from Mentee to Independent Investigator

Looking back, Dr. Raffay says mentorship played a pivotal role in his career development. For instance, Dr. Tipple exposed him to animal modeling for research. The enthusiasm and perseverance Dr. Tipple demonstrated in his lab was contagious, and inspiring. He saw great opportunities for basic science and clinical studies to transform patient care.

Dr. Raffay recalls how Richard J. Martin, MD took him under his wing and showed him all the possibilities within the Division of Neonatology when he was considering fellowship programs.

Once he arrived at UH as a fellow in 2010, Dr. Raffay began training under a T32 grant for which Dr. Martin was the principal investigator. This offered mentored research experiences, career development activities, networking opportunities, and other training, which put Dr. Raffay on a solid career path as a physician-scientist.

He received a Faculty Research Award from the Rainbow Foundation as a trainee and early-stage faculty, which jump started his research, not only in terms of science, but in the networking needed to move it forward. He subsequently received a “K” stage grant from the NIH in 2017 under the joint mentorship of Dr. Martin and Dr. Benjamin Gaston (Pediatric Pulmonologist and Vice Chair for Translational Research at Indiana University), which transitioned him from working under a mentored award to becoming an independently funded scientist. Thereafter, he obtained a pilot R03 to study human collections to identify possible BPD biomarkers, such as GSNOR. Ultimately, the progression of his research resulted in the $2.3 million grant Dr Raffay received in 2024 for basic research to study GSNO and GSNOR.

Resilience in Research: Lessons Learned as a K Awardee

Despite his clinical and research success, Dr. Raffay says he’s experienced plenty of failure and disappointment in between. Research is hard. Rejection of seemingly sound ideas and grant proposals are simply part of the process. He’s learned to be thorough and comprehensive in describing and explaining his research, to secure grants, and to ensure potentially fruitful opportunities and financial support are not overlooked because of lack of research specificity or clarity.

Dr. Raffay says the rejection of a research proposal “is not the worst thing as long as you are still doing the science and pivot to the next project.” He encourages early-stage researchers to take constructive feedback to heart and use it to develop their science and grow professionally.

As the Associate Program Director for Rainbow's Neonatology Fellowship program, Dr. Raffay also mentors and advises fellows, residents, and graduate students. Participating in peer and near-peer groups has also kept him motivated and on track in pursuing independent research opportunities. Dr. Raffay credits the RB&C K-Club, founded by Dr. Anna Maria Hibbs, for providing support and guidance for junior faculty working towards the K to R transition. Dr. Hibbs, his role model for K to R success, is now the UH Rainbow Vice Chair of Pediatric Research and site lead for the NICHD Neonatal Research Network.

“One of the really cool things is to see that turnaround from bench to bedside,” says Dr. Raffay. “I know I’ve taken care of babies helped by interventions we at UH Rainbow had just studied through the NICHD. Our hospital is a founding member of the Network, my hope is the work my lab team is doing now can help a future premature baby breathe easier.”