For 4 decades, I have been in a leadership position within the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP). For many years, I was a member of the executive committee. Currently, I am on the board of directors of the NSABP Foundation, a member of the Colorectal Cancer working group, and chairman of the NSABP radiation advisory committee. For about 15 years, I was chief of Radiation Oncology in the Brain Tumor Study Group (BTSG). In addition, for many years I was very active in the Children’s Oncology Group. I have continued to be very active in the treatment of breast cancer and childhood malignancies. Currently, I am the chief of Radiation Oncology at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. I have published over 150 articles and book chapters. I have also published one book on the treatment of brain tumors in children.
Teaching Activities
Each second-year radiation oncology resident spends 3 months with me. This is mainly for instruction and experience in treating childhood malignancies. Occasional medical students rotate with me for shorter periods of time. First-year fellows in pediatric hematology oncology also spend about 1 month each with me in radiation oncology at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
Representative Publications
Melvin Deutsch MD and John A Vargo MD1, Mohammed Islam MD MS and Sherif Rizk MD, Limited Stage Small Cell Carcinoma of the Anal Canal: A Case Report and Review of the Literature , Journal of Radiation Oncology, 2014.
Research Interests
Faculty support on research grants is 6 percent
Title: Partial liver irradiation in preparation for hepatocyte transplantation in children with metabolic disorders. PI: Dr. Ira Fox
Background: Children with metabolic defects in urea metabolism and Criggler-Najjar Syndrome. Preliminary studies in monkeys, which were carried out at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh indicate that partial live irradiation facilities implantation of hepatocytes.
Methods: Children requiring a liver transplant for correction of hereditary metabolic disorders will be considered for hepatocyte transplantation after partial liver irradiation. We have already treated 3 children with partial liver irradiation in preparation for hepatocyte transplantation. Two other children awaiting hepatocyte cell transplantation.
Results: In monkeys, there seems to be satisfactory implantation of hepatocyte cells into the host liver. However, in monkeys, much higher doses have been utilized. So far, we don’t have the sufficient data in children, and this study is ongoing.