Lauren Merz, MD, MSc

Dr. Merz is from Spring Lake, MI. She earned a BA in Kinesiology and Spanish at Calvin College before obtaining her MD and Master's of Science in Clinical Research at the University of Michigan. She then completed internal medicine training at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, MA before completing hematology/oncology fellowship at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Mass General Brigham.

She joined the faculty at University of Michigan in 2025, specializing in women's health and classical hematology disorders like sickle cell disease, blood clots, ITP, or iron deficiency in pregnancy or with hormone therapy use.

Dr. Merz's research work includes understanding the Duffy null phenotype-- a red blood cell variant common in people with African or Middle Eastern ancestry. She advocated to update the terminology around this variant to Duffy null-associated neutrophil counts (DANC), published the first Duffy null-specific absolute neutrophil count reference range, and was the principal investigator on a grant through the Doris Duke Foundation and the American Society of Hematology to accelerate the update of Duffy null reference ranges across the country. She now works to understand how to personalize diagnostics and treatment plans for people with the Duffy null variant-- especially in cancer care. She also does research in women's health and classical hematology including understanding how to prevent blood clots in pregnancy and optimizing iron stores throughout the reproductive lifespan.

Outside of work, Dr. Merz is an active member in the Ann Arbor community and enjoys spending time with her husband and 2 greyhounds.

Classical hematology, women's health, iron deficiency anemia, blood clots

University of Michigan Health participates with most health insurance plans.

1. Understanding the clinical impacts of the Duffy null phenotype
2. Women's health and classical hematology including iron deficiency, estrogen-associated blood clots, and managing sickle cell disease or ITP in pregnancy. Link to publications