Tara O’Donohue is a Pediatric Hematology Oncology Fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center where her primary clinical and research focus is the development of early phase clinical trials using genomically targeted therapies for relapsed and refractory pediatric cancers. Throughout her fellowship training, Dr. O’Donohue has gained experience in multiple facets of early phase trial development including: preclinical hypothesis testing of novel agents in vitro and in vivo in the laboratory, completing a Master’s degree in Clinical and Translational Investigation through the Cornell Clinical and Translational Science Center, and working with a drug sponsor to develop and open a first in pediatrics, international phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating a novel ALK/ROS1/TRK inhibitor (repotrectinib) for pediatric patients with relapsed and refractory solid tumors. Dr. O’Donohue’s work in Dr. Andrew Kung’s laboratory also provided the preclinical rationale for an investigator-initiated clinical trial evaluating repotrectinib plus conventional chemotherapy for a subset of patients with relapsed and refractory solid tumors that may benefit from augmented therapy.
Read Dr. O’Donahue’s extraordinary CV here.
Dear Margaux’s Miracle Foundation,
I am honored to be the recipient of the Margaux Grossman Fellowship at MSK Kids. On behalf of myself as a clinical and translational investigator as well as on behalf of the rest of my colleagues working to improve outcomes in childhood cancers, we are extremely grateful for your continued support of this important work.
I am currently a fourth-year fellow and clinical instructor focusing on developmental therapeutics in relapsed and refractory childhood cancers. Cancers which occur in the pediatric population are a heterogeneous group of relatively uncommon malignancies with complex and understudied biologic characteristics, often resulting in a lack of effective therapeutic options. I currently work within the Pediatric Translational Medicine Program (PTMP) at MSK Kids which is comprised of a core group of basic, translational, and clinical researchers using state-of-the-art genomic profiling platforms to develop a portfolio of precision medicine-based therapies to improve outcomes for children and young adults with all types of cancer. Within the context of this role, I work closely with laboratory investigators in the Kung Lab to facilitate expeditious preclinical validation of novel therapies in pediatric models to inform rational clinical trial development.
Based on the results of our preclinical work evaluating a novel therapy, repotrectinib, a multi-kinase inhibitor with therapeutic potential in various pediatric sarcomas, neuroblastoma, lymphoma, and central nervous system malignancies, we have worked to develop two different clinical trials. An international, industry-sponsored, first in pediatrics phase 1/2 trial evaluating repotrectinib monotherapy in relapsed and refractory pediatric cancers is currently open and accruing. Furthermore, with support provided by the Swim Across America Young Investigator Award and the Kristen Ann Carr Fellowship, as well as the drug sponsor, Turning Point Therapeutics, we have developed an investigatorinitiated, single-institution phase 1/2 trial combining repotrectinib with irinotecan and temozolomide in pediatric patients with relapsed and refractory pediatric solid tumors. This trial has been submitted to our internal institutional review board, and we anticipate opening to enrollment in the coming months. We are very excited about the therapeutic potential of repotrectinib (alone or in combination with chemotherapy) across a diverse array of pediatric malignancies based on a strong biologic rationale, promising results of preclinical studies in pediatric cancer models, as well as an acceptable safety profile when evaluated in adult patients.
On behalf of the MSK Kids community, and most importantly, our patients and their families, we wanted to extend a heart-felt thank you for your tremendous showing of support for our research program and fellows.
Sincerely,
Tara O’Donohue, MD, MS