D E P A R T M E N T O F O N C O L O G Y
2 0 0 3 A N N U A L R E P O R T
Division of Pediatrics
Chief : Max J Coppes, MD, PhD
The highlights of the year for the division were the recruitment of a physician scientist, Dr Aru
Narendran, as the fifth oncologist in the division, the awarding to Dr Steve Robbins of over
$750,000 of new grant support, and the awarding to Dr Narendran of the prestigious
Schweisguth Award at the 35 th annual International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) meeting in November in Cairo, Egypt. Drs Narendran and Arcellana-Panlilio, herself recognized by the SIOP for her laboratory research, each presented results of their work at the SIOP meeting.
The Division contributed 15 publications and was involved in over $2.8 million grant funding for
2003 alone. Dr Anderson led the Blood Course for the Medical School, and accepted leadership of the effort to establish a pediatric hematology oncology residency program at
Alberta Children’s Hospital (ACH). Drs Anderson, Lewis, and Strother presented several grand rounds for the Departments of Oncology and Pediatrics. Dr Robbins continued to make substantial contributions in graduate education as Director of the Cancer Biology Graduate
Program.
Dr Narendran will be the third member of the division whose primary responsibilities will be research laboratory based. He joins Drs Arcellani-Panlilio and Robbins in this capacity.
Drs Coppes and Strother contributed significantly to efforts to establish Canadian consortia for clinical and translational pediatric oncology research, the former through his role as Co-Chair of the Canadian Council of Pediatric Hematology Oncology Program Directors, and the latter as one of three members of the steering committee for the formation of the Canadian Pediatric
Brain Tumor Consortium. Dr Coppes was also selected as Chair of the Medical and Scientific
Advisory Board for the Children’s Oncology Group (COG).
Members of the Division continued to contribute to the Children’s Oncology Group and to institutional research. Dr Strother took over the position of ACH Principal Investigator for the
COG from Dr Coppes. Dr Strother continued his roles as COG PI for the low-risk neuroblastoma study and Co-Chair of the COG Infant Brain Tumor Committee. Ms Norma
Auger served in leadership roles in the COG Nursing Discipline and Phase I research efforts.
Dr Lewis headed the provincial pediatric bone marrow transplant (BMT) program and established a database with over a decade’s results of treatment outcomes. He contributed to the development of several BMT clinical trials that will open at ACH.
C URRENT M EMBERS :
RONALD A. ANDERSON, MD, FRCPC
Tel: 943-7276
Fax: 228-4196 ronald.anderson@calgaryhealthregion.ca
MAX J. COPPES, MD, PhD
ARU NARENDRAN, MD, PhD
Tel: 944-8787
Fax: 270-8243 anarendr@ucalgary.ca
Tel: 943-7269
Fax: 228-4196
STEPHEN M. ROBBINS, PhD
Tel: 220-4304
Fax: 283-8727

mcoppes@cancerboard.ab.ca
R. PETER FARRAN, DVM, MD, FRCPC
Tel: 943-7810
Fax: 943-7649 peter.farran@calgaryhealthregion.ca
VICTOR LEWIS, MB, BS
Tel: 943-7237
Fax: 228-4196 victor.lewis@calgaryhealthregion.ca
R ESEARCH :
Dr. S. Robbins srobbins@ucalgary.ca
MAYI ARCELLANA-PANLILIO, PhD
Tel: 220-4385
Fax: 283-8727 myarcell@ucalgary.ca
DOUGLAS STROTHER, MD
Tel: 943-7899
Fax: 228-4196 doug.strother@calgaryhealthregion.ca
2003-2008 CIHR - $300,000/year
2003-2005 Cancer Research Society Inc. - $60,000/year
2003-2006 CIHR, Multi-User Maintenance - $42,000/year
2003-2004 Alberta Cancer Board - $450,000
2002-2008 CIHR - $256,000/year
2002-2004 Cancer Research Society Inc. - $60,000/year
2002-2007 Canadian Institutes of Health Research - $139,114/year
2002-2007 Canadian Institutes of Health Research - $136,497/year
2001-2004 Canadian Institutes of Health Research Group Grant - $350,000/year
2001-2006 Canadian Institutes of Health Research - $987,000/year
2001-2003 Cancer Research Society Inc - $59,000/year
2000-2003 Alberta Cancer Board - $1,800,000 for 3 years
Dr. M. Coppes
2000-2003 Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta - $147,666
Dr. D. Strother
2002-2007 Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta - $200,000
2003-2004 Children’s Oncology Group - $10,000
2003-2004
Children’s Oncology Group - $22,944/yr (renewed annually)
Continuing NCI - $20,150 (US), continuing
P
UBLICATIONS
:
Yipp, B.G., Robbins,S.M., Resek, M.E., Baruch, D.I., Looareesuwan, S. and Ho, M. 2003 Srcfamily Kinase Signaling Modulates the Adhesion of Plasmodium falciparum on Human
Microvascular Endothelium. Blood 101: 2850-2857.
Ridyard, M.S. and Robbins, S.M
. 2003 Fibroblast growth factor-2 induced signaling through lipid raft associated Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor Substrate-2 (FRS2). J.Biol. Chem.
278:13803-13809.
Kerfoot, S.M., Lord, S.E., Bell, R.B., Gill, V., Robbins, S.M.
and Kubes, P. (2003) Human fractalkine mediates leukocyte adhesion but not capture under physiological shear conditions; a mechanism for selective monocyte recruitment. Eur. J. Immunol. 33: 729-739.
Gauthier, L.R. and Robbins, S.M.
(2003) Ephrin Signaling: One raft to rule them all? One raft

to sort them? One raft to spread their call and in signaling bind them? Life Sciences 74:207-
216.
_______________________
Davies HD, Leusink, G, McConnell A, Deyell M, Cassidy, S, Fick GH, Coppes MJ : Myeloid leukemia in Prader-Willi syndrome, J Pediatrics 142:174-178, 2003.
Baker JM, Coppes MJ , Roland B: A case of an additional isochromosome Xp in acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Cancer Genetics & Cytogenetics, 147:75-77, 2003.
Kalapurakal JA, Dome JS, Perlman EJ, Malogolowkin M, Haase GM, Grundy P, Coppes MJ :
Management of Wilms tumor: current practice and future goals, The Lancet Oncology, in press.
_______________________
Le D, Kong N, Zhu Y, Lauchle J, Braun B, Aiyagari A, Parada L, Shannon K. Somatic
Inactivation of Nf1 in Hematopoietic Cells Results in a Progressive Myeloproliferative Disorder.
Accepted to Blood December 2003.
Braun B, Tuveson D, Kong N, Le D , Kogan S, Rozmus J, LeBeau M, Jacks T, Shannon K.
Somatic activation of oncogenic Kras in hematopoietic cells initiates a rapidly fatal myeloproliferative disorder. Accepted to PNAS December 2003.
_______________________
Narendran, A ., Ganjavi, H., Morson, M., Conner,A., Keystone, E., Malkin, D. and M. H.
Freedman. Mutant p53 in bone marrow stromal cells induces VEGF and supports leukemia cell growth. Experimental Hematology, 2003 Aug; 31(8): 693-701.
_______________________
Lewis V , Basso L, Blake N, Lund T, McIvor R, Orchard P: Human Nerve Growth Factor
Receptor and Cytosine Deaminase Genes. Submitted to “Human Gene Therapy 2003 Jul
1;14(10):1009-16 ”.
Ramnaraine M, Pan W, Goblirsch M, Lynch C, Mantyh P, Orchard P, Lewis V , Clohisy D:
Direct and Bystander Killing of Sarcoma Cells by Novel Cytosine Deaminase Fusion Gene .
(submitted to Cancer Research)
Ashish K, Saltzman D, Khukula M, Lewis V , Wendorf R, Sauer M, Neglia J, Baker S, Mac Millan
M, Steiner M: Diagnostic peritoneal lavage (DPL) for assessing acute abdomen in pediatric oncology and stem cell transplantation patients. (submitted to Journal of Pediatric
Hematology/Oncology)
_______________________
Mitchell L: For the PAARKA study: A prospective cohort study determining the prevalence of thrombotic events in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and a central venous line who are treated with L-asparaginase: Results of the PAARKA Study. Cancer: Vol 97, No 2: 508-
516, 2003.
Barker CC, Butzner JD, Anderson RA , Brant R, Sauve RS: Incidence, survival and risk factors for the development of veno-occlusive disease in pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients: Bone Marrow Transplantation: 32, 79-87, 2003.
_______________________
Rousseau RF, Haight AE, Hirschmann-Jax C, Yvon ES, Rill DR, Mei Z, Smith SC, Inman S,
Cooper K, Alcoser P, Grilley B, Gee A, Popek E, Davidoff A, Bowman LC, Brenner MK,

Strother D. Local and systemic effects of an allogeneic tumor cell vaccine combining transgenic human lymphotactin with interleukin-2 in patients with advanced or refractory neuroblastoma. Blood. 2003 Mar 1; 101(5) :1718-26.