Research Faculty

Lisa Diller, MD

Department Department of Medicine
Hospital Title Associated in Medicine
Academic Title Professor of Pediatrics
Phone 617-632-5642
Fax 617-582-8218
Email Lisa Diller
Location Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
450 Brookline Ave
Boston MA 02215

Research Overview

The focus of our research is in two major areas: the treatment of patients with solid tumors -- notably neuroblastoma -- and the study of survivors of childhood cancer.

In treating patients with neuroblastoma, our approach has been to intensify therapy using high-dose therapy in tandem with stem cell rescue. We are participants in the NANT (New Agents in Neuroblastoma Therapy) consortium and the COG Phase 1 consortium. Our translational work in collaboration with Dr. Rani George and Dr. Kim Stegmaier focuses on identification of new targeted agents for neuroblastoma. We have an active targeted radiotherapy clinical trials program, utilizing MIBG therapy, and clinical trials in immunotherapy for neuroblastoma.

In research on medical late effects, we have been studying young adult patients with a history of cancer treatment, hoping to delineate the morbidity of a variety of therapies and to introduce screening and prevention in this group of patients. An early mammography trial after chest irradiation has been completed, showing that women who were treated with chest radiation are at significant risk of breast cancer and that mammography detects early tumors in this cohort. A study of MRI detection is underway.

We are active participants in the largest childhood cancer survivor cohort study, the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, involving 24 centers and over 17,000 survivors. We have completed an analysis of breast cancers in that cohort, and we are studying risk factors for secondary sarcomas.

About Lisa Diller

Lisa Diller received her MD from the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine. She completed an internship, residency, and fellowship at Children's Hospital Boston.

Key Publications

 

  • Henderson T, Whitton J, Stovall M, Mertens AC, Mitby P, Friedman D, Strong L, Hammond S, Neglia JP, Meadows AT, Robison LL, Diller L. Secondary sarcomas in childhood cancer survivors: A report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 2007 Feb 99 (4):300-8.
  • Masciari S, Van den Abbeele AD, Diller L, Rastarhuyeva I, Yap J, Schneider K, Digianni L, Li FP, Fraumeni Jr. JF, Syngal S, Garber JE. F18-fluorodeoxyglucose-position emission tomography/computed tomography screening in Li-Fraumeni syndrome. JAMA. 2008 Mar 19;299(11):1315-9.
  • George RE, Sanda T, Hanna M, Frohling S, Luther II W, Zhang J, Ahn Y, Zhou W, London WB, McGrady P, Xue L, Zozulya S, Gregor V, Webb TR, Gray NS, Gilliland DG, Diller L, Greulich H, Morris SW, Meyerson M, Look AT. Activating mutations in the ALK tyrosine kinase provide a therapeutic target in neuroblastoma. Nature. 2008 Oct; 16 455(7215):975-8.
  • Oeffinger KC, Ford JS, Moskowitz CS, Diller L, Hudson MM, Chou JF, Smith SM, Mertens AC, Henderson TO, Friedman DL, Leisenring WM, Robison LL. Breast cancer surveillance practices among women previously treated with chest radiation for a childhood cancer: A Report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS). JAMA. 2009 Jan 28; 301(4): 404-14.
  • Diller L, Chow EJ, Gurney JG, Hudson MM, Kadin-Lottick NS, Kawashima TI, Leisenring WM, Meacham LR, Mertens AC, Mulrooney DA, Oeffinger KC, Packer RJ, Robison LL, Sklar CA. Chronic disease in the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study cohort: a review of published findings. J Clin Oncol. 2009 May 10;27(14):2339-55.
  • Laverdière C, Liu Q, Yasui Y, Nathan PC, Gurney JG, Stovall M, Diller L, Cheung NK, Wolden S, Robison LL, Sklar CA. Long-term outcomes in survivors of neuroblastoma: A Report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2009 Aug 19;101(16):1131-40. 
  • Kenney LB, Medeiros-Nancarrow C, Najita J, Vrooman L, Rothwell M, Recklitis C, Li F, Diller L. Health Status of the oldest adult survivors of cancer during childhood. Cancer. 2010 Jan 15;116(2): 497-505.
  • Henderson TO, Hlubocky FJ, Kasza KK,Diller L, Daugherty CK. Physician Preferences and Knowledge Gaps Regarding the Care of Childhood Cancer Survivors: A Mailed Survey of Pediatric Oncologists. J Clin Oncol. 2010 Feb 10;28(5);878-83.
  • Henderson TO, Amsterdam A, Bhatia S, Hudson M, Meadows AT, Neglia JP, Diller L, Constine LS, Smith RA, Mahoney MC, Morris EA, Montgomery LL, Landier W, Smith SM, Robison LL, Oeffinger KC. Systematic Review: Surveillance For Breast Cancer in Women Treated With Chest Radiation for A Childhood, Adolescent or Young Adult Cancer: A Report From The Children’s Oncology Group. Ann Intern Med. 2010 Apr 6:152(7):444-5.
  • Yeh JM, Nekhlyudov L, Goldie SJ, Mertens AC, Diller L. Life Expectancy Losses from Late Effects for Childhood Cancer Survivors: A Model-Based Estimate of Cumulative Excess mortality. Ann Intern Med. 2010 Apr 6;152(7):409-17.
  • London WB, Frantz CH, Campbell LA, Seeger RC, Brumback BA, Cohn SL, Matthay KK, Castleberry RP, Diller L. 2010 Phase II Randomized Comparison of Topotecan plus Cyclophosphamide vs. Topotecan Alone in Children with Recurrent or Refractory Neuroblastoma: A Children's Oncology Group Study. J Clin Oncol. (in press)
  • George RE, Lahti J, Adamson P, Zhu K, Finkelstein D, Ingle AM, Reid J, Krailo M, Neuberg D, Blaney S, Diller L. 2010. Phase I Study of Decitabine with Doxorubicin and Cyclophosphamide in Children with Neuroblastoma and other Solid Tumors - A Children's Oncology Group Study. Pediatric Blood and Cancer. (in press)
  • McCullough L, Ng A, Najita J, Janov A, Henderson T, Mauch P, Diller L. 2010 Breastfeeding in survivors of chest radiation for Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Cancer (in press)
  • Chen MH, Colan SD, Diller L. Cardiovascular Disease-Hidden Killer in Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer. Circulation Research. 2011 Mar 4;108(5):619-28.
  • Goldsby R, Chen Y, Raber S, Li L, Diefenbach K, Shnorhavorian M, Kadan-Lottick N, Kastrinos F, Yasui Y, Stovall M, Oeffinger K, Sklar C, Armstrong G, Robison L, Diller L. Late Gastrointestinal Complications in Survivors of Childhood Cancer: A Report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Gastroenterology. 2011. May;140(5):1464-1471.e1.
  • Armenian SH, Sun CL, Kawashima T, Arora M, Leisenring W, Sklar CA, Baker KS, Francisco L, Teh JB, Mills G, Wong FL, Rosenthal J,Diller L, Hudson MM, Oeffinger KC, Forman SJ, Robison LL, Bhatia S. Long-term health-related outcomes in survivors of childhood cancer treated with hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) versus conventional therapy: a report from the Bone Marrow Transplant Survivor Study (BMTSS) and Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS). Blood. 2011. Aug 4:118(5):1413-20.
  • Kenney LB, Bradeen H, Kadan-Lottick N, Diller L, Homans A, Schwartz CL. 2011. The Current Status of Follow-Up Services for Childhood Cancer Survivors, Consortium for New England Childhood Cancer Survivors. Pediatric Blood and Cancer. (in press).