Jonathan Chen, MD, joined Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia as chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery in September 2018, bringing his noteworthy track record of promoting collaborative, multidisciplinary care in pediatric cardiovascular cases. Dr. Chen’s clinical research is focused on surgical issues in complex congenital heart care, cardiac transplantation, and development of mechanical ventricular assist devices for children.

He holds the Mortimer J. Buckley Jr., MD, Endowed Chair in Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery and is co-director of the Cardiac Center with Joseph Rossano, MD, chief of the Division of Cardiology. The Cardiac Center team performs more than 1,000 cardiothoracic surgeries each year, including 600 open-heart procedures in children and adolescents with complex heart conditions.

“We want the Cardiac Center to be the destination where you come to have the highest level of expertise across the entire spectrum of congenital heart care — where you have access to novel therapies, devices, investigative trials that represent the vanguard of our field,” Dr. Chen shared when he joined CHOP. “There are a lot of great cardiac centers in the world, but there are very few places like CHOP that have the individual intellect, the drive, and the desire to solve unanswered questions. Only a place like CHOP can hope to find those answers and, in fact, change the game.”

Dr. Chen most recently served as chief of Congenital Cardiac Surgery at Seattle Children’s Hospital, co-director of the Heart Center, and professor of Surgery at the University of Washington School of Medicine and held the Sam and Althea Stroum Endowed Chair in Pediatric Cardiovascular Surgery. Over the past decade, he has led humanitarian trips with several volunteer organizations to provide cardiovascular care to developing countries including Cambodia, Senegal, China, India, and Brazil. Committed to continuing education, Dr. Chen serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.

Peter Kurre, MD, joined Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia as director of the Comprehensive Bone Marrow Failure Center (CBMFC) in August 2018 to lead the development of new therapies for bone marrow failure (BMF) syndromes in children. The Center, which has an international reputation of excellence in the treatment of BMF disorders, currently follows more than 200 patients.

Established in 2010, the CBMFC provides world-class clinical care for patients and families with inherited and acquired forms of BMF and conducts groundbreaking basic, translational, and clinical research to improve diagnosis and treatment for patients with BMF disorders. Dr. Kurre leads collaborative efforts to leverage molecular technologies to improve diagnostic approaches to BMF; develop clinical trials for patients and investigate their heightened risk for developing cancer; and facilitate development of stem-cell-directed gene therapy.

Designed with an integrative approach to patient care and translational research in mind, the Center supports several research labs investigating clonal evolutions in severe aplastic anemia, human leukocyte antigen risk allele definition, niche contributions to haematopoietic stem cell deficits in inherited BMF disorders, stem cell gene therapy, and developmental origins of BMF. One of the largest repositories of samples from patients with BMF disorders supports CBMFC research activities and a range of collaborative projects with centers elsewhere in the United States and abroad.

In addition his directorship, Dr. Kurre is a professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and holds the Buck Family Chair in Hematology Research, which supports research in BMF syndromes.

In January 2019, Robert Levy, MD, took the leading role as director and principal investigator of the Pennsylvania Pediatric Medical Device Consortium (PPDC) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, which is focused solely on developing pediatric medical device concepts. Formerly known as the Philadelphia Pediatric Medical Device Consortium, the new name reflects a new partnership with the University of Pittsburgh, and statewide expansion.

One of five consortia currently funded through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Pediatric Device Grants Consortia Program, the recent renewal of the PPDC’s five-year grant created a fortuitous time to solidify a partnership with colleagues and collaborators with the University of Pittsburgh-based McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Pitt’s innovation center, sciVelo.

In addition to awarding its own extramural grants, the PPDC has a new early stage development program in partnership with the Philadelphia-area medical device design company, Archimedic, with the goal of taking pediatric medical device ideas from concept to feasibility with expert engineering assistance. Dr. Levy looks forward to guiding the future of the consortium by continuing the project he and founding director Matthew Maltese, PhD, initiated.

As the new director of Obstetrical Services at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Center for Fetal Diagnosis and Treatment (CFDT), Julie Moldenhauer, MD, FACOG, FACMG, oversees highly specialized, comprehensive obstetrical care in the multidisciplinary fetal medicine program while continuing as medical director of the Garbose Family Special Delivery Unit, the world’s first birth facility in a pediatric hospital specifically designed for healthy mothers who will deliver babies with known birth defects or genetic conditions.

An internationally recognized leader in fetal diagnosis, fetal surgery and fetal care, the CFDT has cared for more than 22,775 expectant women or mothers from all 50 states and from more than 70 countries, and it has performed more than 1,691 fetal surgeries, including those to treat spina bifida, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, and twin-twin transfusion syndrome before birth.

Among Dr. Moldenhauer’s translational research interests are improvements to the prenatal and obstetrical management of pregnancies complicated by fetal birth defects, the impact of fetal therapy on maternal outcomes, and postpartum depression in mothers carrying babies with fetal anomalies.

In addition to her appointments within the CFDT, Dr. Moldenhauer serves as an associate professor of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology in Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, holds the George Leib Harrison Endowed Chair in Fetal Therapy, and is the immediate past chair of the Board of Directors of the North American Fetal Therapy Network.

Pediatric oncologist and researcher Yael Mossé, MD, is the inaugural holder of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Patricia Brophy Endowed Chair in Neuroblastoma Research. 

As director of the Neuroblastoma Development Therapeutics Program at CHOP and an attending physician at its Cancer Center, Dr. Mossé treats patients with high-risk neuroblastoma. Among her patients was 8-year-old Alex Scott, who founded the Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation before succumbing to neuroblastoma in 2004.

The endowed chair is named for Patricia “Pat” Brophy, one of Alex’s nurses at CHOP as well as a dear friend, colleague, and mentor of Dr. Mossé. Ms. Brophy passed away in 2008 after her own cancer illness. The Brophy Endowed Chair was established to support the development of new therapies for neuroblastoma patients, and first announced in June 2018, during the foundation’s 15th annual “Lemonade Stand” fundraiser at CHOP to benefit pediatric cancer research.

“It’s simply wonderful to know that Pat’s memory is still very present,” Dr. Mossé said. “I know she would be really amazed by the progress we’ve made, but she was always one to want to do more for these kids. Her memory, her grit, and her passion for these kids is always with me. And now to be able to carry her with me as I move forward in a new phase of my career is humbling.”

Neuroblastoma is a formidable cancer that starts in the nerve tissues of infants and young children and is one of the more common childhood cancers. Unfortunately, cure rates have improved only slightly in the last 20 years. Dr. Mossé and her research team discovered gene mutations that are the primary cause of inherited neuroblastoma and that also play a significant role in the more common, non-inherited form of the disease.

Dr. Mossé led the breakthrough discovery that identified the most common neuroblastoma-specific cancer-causing mutation in the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene and is leading efforts to translate this discovery to the therapeutic use of ALK-inhibiting drugs.

In his new position as chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Jesse Taylor, MD, oversees one of the largest children’s plastic surgery centers in the United States.

Dr. Taylor holds the Peter Randall Chair in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at CHOP and is the co-director of the Cleft Lip and Palate Program. Each year, CHOP performs more than 1,000 surgical procedures related to cleft lip and palate repair and provides ongoing care for more than 700 patients with cleft defects. 

In treating children and adolescents with congenital and acquired differences of the face and skull, Dr. Taylor specializes in craniosynostosis surgery, jaw surgery, surgery for facial asymmetries, cleft lip and palate repair, rhinoplasty, otoplasty, cranial reconstruction, cranio-maxillo-facial distraction osteogenesis, and complex facial reconstruction. He also shares his expertise by providing for children who may otherwise go untreated on international surgical mission trips, and he contributes to the care of international cleft and craniofacial patients through visiting professor appointments throughout Central and South America, Europe, and Asia.

In 2017, Dr. Taylor successfully co-led a 30-member clinical team to complete the surgical separation of 10-month-old twins. While the procedure marked the 24th time CHOP surgeons have separated conjoined twins, it was the first time the twins were joined at the head.

Dr. Taylor also is a professor of surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and director of the Penn Craniofacial Fellowship Program.

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia welcomed Lisa R. Young, MD, as chief of the Division of Pulmonary Medicine and the John M. Keating Endowed Chair in Pediatrics – President’s Scholar in June 2019. An international expert in rare and genetic lung diseases in children, Dr. Young has received multiple awards for her research, including the American Thoracic Society Robert B. Mellins Outstanding Achievement Award, the American Thoracic Society Public Advisory Roundtable Excellence Award, and the LAM Foundation Scientific Advancement Award. She will use her expertise to further CHOP’s leadership in training and career development for young investigators focused on pulmonary research.

“A growing body of evidence demonstrates that lung development is ongoing in childhood, and many lung diseases start early in life, resulting in long-term health consequences,” Dr. Young said. “We now have unprecedented opportunity to advance our understanding of rare and common diseases across the lifespan and translate these findings to improve lung health and patient outcomes.”

Respiratory illnesses are responsible for the majority of visits to pediatricians, the emergency department, and hospital admissions, and the Division of Pulmonary Medicine has high quality, large volume inpatient and outpatient clinical programs to address the spectrum of childhood lung diseases. 

A renowned physician-scientist, Dr. Young has received numerous grant awards for laboratory and clinical research on a variety of lung diseases, and is the principal investigator on multiple National Institutes of Health-funded projects including a Midcareer Award in Mentoring in Patient-Oriented Research. She is especially interested in interstitial and other rare lung diseases including Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome, neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia of infancy, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and lymphangioleiomyomatosis.

Dr. Young is a professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and an associate director in the recently established Penn-CHOP Lung Biology Institute (LBI). With founding director Edward Morrissey, PhD and Jason Christie, MD, she joins the LBI leadership team in its mission to integrate the outstanding expertise in translational pulmonary research and patient care at both CHOP and Penn with fundamental discovery research across campus.

She most recently was a faculty member in the Departments of Pediatrics, Medicine, and Cell and Developmental Biology at Vanderbilt University, and was the director of the Pediatric Rare Lung Diseases Program for Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee.

Yi Xing, PhD, arrived at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in September 2018 to launch the Center for Computational and Genomic Medicine, which harnesses computing, big data, and genomic technologies to facilitate biological discoveries and medical innovations.

As founding director, Dr. Xing brings his expertise in synthesizing vast and diverse data sets to generate novel insights into how the human genome works and create new opportunities for pediatric medicine. The Center leverages the Research Institute’s strength in recognizing the underlying genetics of pediatric disorders and developing molecular and cellular therapeutics, while drawing on resources such as CHOP’s biorepositories and electronic health record.

Dr. Xing relocated his hybrid computational/experimental lab and team of 20 investigators from the University of California at Los Angeles to CHOP’s research campus. Up to 60 percent of the mutations that cause human disease disrupt ribonucleic acid (RNA) processing. Among the team’s research priorities is to focus on how gene regulation is controlled at the level of RNA molecules, specifically messenger RNA processing. Understanding how RNA-level complexities are generated and how they function will lead to new diagnostic approaches and therapies.

The Xing Lab team has developed transformative technologies that are already used by the genomic research community. These include a computational tool, called DARTS, which uses deep learning to harness the wealth of information available in large-scale public RNA sequencing datasets.

Dr. Xing holds the new Francis West Lewis Chair in Computational and Genomic Medicine at CHOP, and is a professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He has published extensively on bioinformatics, genomics, and RNA biology, receiving numerous awards for his work.

The Center will recruit new faculty members, focusing on experts who can develop new genomic technologies or computational tools for use by the broader scientific community. Dr. Xing’s vision is to make the Center an engine for technological and biomedical innovation.

Katherine Yun, MD, MHS, a researcher at PolicyLab and pediatrician with CHOP’s Refugee Health Program, was named director of the Academic General Pediatrics (AGP) Fellowship.

The AGP fellowship addresses key clinical, health services, and policy issues in primary care pediatrics, and offers research training and mentorship. The fellowship is intended to prepare trainees to improve healthcare for underserved children through primary care research and leadership.

Dr. Yun’s research focuses on access and quality of care for refugee and immigrant children, with a particular emphasis on equitable care for families who have recently arrived in the United States and English language learners. As part of her work with the Refugee Health Program, she provides high-quality healthcare for refugee, asylee, and other immigrant children who have recently arrived in the United States.

Dr. Yun is assistant professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine and an attending physician in CHOP’s Division of General Pediatrics. She previously served as supervising physician at the award-winning Pediatric Refugee Clinic at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital in Connecticut and as a coordinator for pediatric care at Puentes de Salud.

Elizabeth Goldmuntz, MD, FAAP, FACC, assumed the newly created leadership role of associate chief clinical research officer at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute in July 2019. Working closely with Richard Aplenc, MD, PhD, MSCE, chief clinical research officer, she will devise and implement improved communication practices and processes for principal investigators through the Research Institute.

A professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and an attending cardiologist in CHOP’s Cardiac Center, Dr. Goldmuntz has directed a translational research program on the genetic basis of congenital heart disease and the relationship of genotype to clinical outcomes, with a focus on conotruncal cardiac defects. Through her research, Dr. Goldmuntz has banked samples from more than 6,000 case-parent trios in conjunction with relevant family and medical histories, and engaged in collaborative, genomic analyses and outcome studies.

In the Cardiac Center, Dr. Goldmuntz specializes in echocardiography and the care of cardiac patients with the 22q11.2 deletion and other genetic syndromes. She has been at CHOP for more than 30 years, having completed all of her pediatric and specialized clinical training here before joining the faculty.