Dr. Pellman

As reported last year, David Pellman, MD, of Pediatric Oncology, who is distinguished as a children’s cancer physician, an investigator of the mechanics of cell division, and a mentor to young researchers, was named the new Ted Williams Senior Investigator at Dana-Farber.  Funded by the founding members of DFCI’s Ted Williams .406 Club, the position supports basic and clinical research in children’s cancers.

Pellman’s skills as a scientist, and his versatility as a clinician and teacher, have been recognized with numerous honors, including membership in the American Society for Clinical Investigation, a BASF Bioresearch Award in 2001, and a Graduate Student Mentoring Award from Harvard Medical School in 1999.

Last year, Institute President Edward J. Benz Jr., MD, issued a bold challenge to Dana-Farber's staff: to conquer at least one major form of cancer in the next 10 years.  With that goal in mind and Dr. Pellman's expertise, his laboratory has made several contributions toward this challenge, contributions made possible by the support of the Patrick Faolan McDonough Endowment Fund.

A few of the contributions are:

• Dr. Pellman and his colleagues have proven a nearly 100 year old theory about cancer development, one that may help lay rest questions about fundamental steps in cancer development.
• Dr. Pellman has found that aneuploidy - the cellular state of having more chromosomes than normal - may have beneficial effects in stressed but non-cancerous cells.  It may be possible to apply the mechanisms that control aneuploidy in these cells to the treatment of aneuploid cancer cells.
• The Pellman Laboratory has determined how the cell controls the function of formins, a family of proteins that help mold cellular shape and polarity.  This information could shed further light on the links between polarity, cell division and metastasis.

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