Dr. Elyssa Rubin

A pediatric oncologist, Dr. Elyssa Rubin has cared for children with cancer at CHOC for almost a dozen years. And in that time, she’s forged strong relationships with patients and families – the part of her job that she loves most.

“Knowing that, despite what they’re going through or the outcome, I can possibly make it easier or have a positive impact for them in some way is meaningful,” Dr. Rubin says. “Curing the cancer and getting patients and families back to living their lives is the goal and is a truly meaningful part.”

And while she’s working to get patients back to their normal lives, Dr. Rubin and other CHOC staff members are careful to ensure their patients don’t miss out on opportunities to have fun and enjoy childhood while hospitalized.

“In addition to direct medical care, the help of additional services such as pet therapy, music therapy, child life specialists, complementary medicine and spiritual care all help to heal and get kids home as soon as possible,” she says.

Dr. Rubin chose her specialty because she found the science behind cancers to be fascinating.

“Also, it’s a field that’s ever changing with advances in research,” Dr. Rubin says. “It’s exciting to witness progress throughout the years of my career.”

Dr. Rubin is board-certified in pediatrics and pediatric hematology/oncology. She completed her medical school training at the Sackler School of Medicine, New York State/American Branch in Tel Aviv, Israel. She completed her pediatric internship and residency training at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center and her fellowship in pediatric hematology/oncology at CHOC.