17 Children’s doctors featured at SIOP

This October, thousands of pediatric oncologists, researchers, nurses, allied health professionals, patients and survivors will gather in Washington, D.C., for the 49^th Congress of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP). Chaired by Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D., Vice President of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders and Chief of Oncology at Children’s National Health System, and Stephen P. Hunger, M.D., of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the meeting will feature talks by renowned experts in pediatric oncology, including 17 doctors from Children’s National.

Among these expert speakers are AeRang Kim, M.D., Ph.D., pediatric oncologist and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, who will present her latest research on new approaches to local control of sarcomas as part of the SIOP Education Day. Dr. Kim focuses on the development of novel agents and devices for pediatric cancer including pre-clinical testing of novel agents, pharmacokinetic analysis, developing innovative methods for toxicity monitoring and clinical trial design.

Also speaking is Catherine Bollard, M.D., MBChB, Chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Children’s National, Professor of Pediatrics and of Microbiology, Immunology and Tropical Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences and Director of the Program for Cell Enhancement and Technologies for Immunotherapy (CETI). Dr. Bollard will present a talk as part of the SIOP-St. Baldrick’s Symposium on Cell Therapy for Viral Infections.  Her translational research focuses on developing and applying novel cell therapies to improve outcomes for patients with viral infections, cancer and immunologic disorders.

And, D. Ashley Hill, M.D., Chief of the Division of Anatomic Pathology and Professor of Pathology and Pediatrics at the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, will be giving a keynote address on DICER1 mutations in pediatric cancer. Dr. Hill first reported the connection between pleuropulmonary blastoma, a rare childhood lung tumor, and mutations in DICER1, setting the stage for our understanding of microRNA processing gene mutations in the development of pediatric cancer.

Other speakers, session chairs and abstract presenters from Children’s National include:

• Anne L. Angiolillo, M.D., M.Sc., Director of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Program at Children’s National Health System
• Kristina K. Hardy, Ph.D., Pediatric Psychologist at Children’s National Health System
• Pamela Hinds, R.N., Ph.D., F.A.A.N., Director of Nursing Research and Quality Outcomes at Children’s National Health System
• Eugene Hwang, M.D., Director of the Clinical Neuro-oncology Immunotherapeutics Program at Children’s National Health System
• Robert Keating, M.D., Chief of Neurosurgery at Children’s National Health System
• Lindsay Kilburn, M.D., Neuro-oncologist at Children’s National Health System
• Matthew Ladra, M.D., Pediatric Radiation Oncologist for the Johns Hopkins and Children’s National Pediatric Cancer Care collaborative program at Sibley Memorial Hospital
• Maureen Lyon, Ph.D., Psychologist at Children’s National Health System
• Holly Meany, M. D., Director of the Solid Tumor Program at Children’s National Health System
• Marie Nelson, M.D., Oncologist at Children’s National Health System
• Roger J. Packer, M.D., Senior Vice-President of the Center for Neuroscience and Behavioral Medicine, Director of the Gilbert Neurofibromatosis Institute and the Brain Tumor Institute at Children’s National Health System
• Karun Sharma, M.D., Director of Interventional Radiology at Children’s National Health System
• Carly Varela, M.D., Oncologist at Children’s National Health System