Margaret von Mehren, MD
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Clinical Locations
Primary Location
Fox Chase Cancer Center
333 Cottman Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19111
Chief, Division of Sarcoma Medical Oncology
Physician Director, Clinical Trials Office
Associate Director, Clinical Research
Professor, Department of Hematology/Oncology
TRDG Member, Melanoma and Skin Cancer; Sarcoma and GIST Cancer
NCCN, Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Panel Member
NCCN, Soft Tissue Sarcoma Panel Member
Specialties
Treatment Focus
Chemotherapy; tyrosine kinase therapy; immunotherapy
Key Awards
- America’s Top Doctors® 2015-2017
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2006-2017
Treatment Philosophy
I first had the opportunity to treat patients with sarcoma during my oncology fellowship training. I really enjoyed the challenge of this area of oncology because of the many types of tumors and their rarity. When I meet a patient, I work to be certain the pathologic diagnosis is correct and address what we need to do to treat the disease. I collaborate with Fox Chase pathologists, radiologists, surgeons, radiation oncologists and social workers to develop the right treatment plan. We meet as a team weekly at the Sarcoma multi-disciplinary tumor board to review individual patient cases and agree on the best management.
I am also committed to developing new therapies for patients with sarcomas. The strides made in improving cancer care have come from research and clinical trials. I work closely with scientists to better understand gastrointestinal stromal tumors and other sarcomas. I aim to have research studies as a treatment option for my sarcoma patients.
Educational Background
- Fellow, Hematology/Oncology, Fox Chase Cancer Center and Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
- Resident, Internal Medicine, New York University Medical Center, NY
- MD, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY, 1989
- BS, Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 1985
Certifications
- Oncology, Board Certified, 1997, 2007
- Internal Medicine, Board Certified, 1993
Memberships
- National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)
- Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Panel
- JNCCN Editorial Board
- Soft Tissue Sarcoma Panel
- American Society of Clinical Oncology
- American Association of Cancer Research
- Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
- Connective Tissue Oncology Society
- Intergroup Coalition Against Sarcomas, 2003-2007
- Sarcoma Alliance through Research and Collaboration
- Medical Advisory and Editorial Board of the of the Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative, 2010-201
Honors & Awards
- Philadelphia Magazine Top Doctors, 2006-2017
- America’s Top Doctors® 2015-2017
- Best Doctors in America® 2013, 2014
- Co-Chairman, 2013 GIST NET Global Opinion Leader Summit, Helsinki, FI, 2013
- Co-Chairman, 2008 GIST Global Opinion Leader Summit, Warsaw, Poland, 2008
- Clinical Investigator Training Program K-12 Award, Fox Chase Cancer Center, 1996-1998
- Kenneth B. Olsen Prize, The Lamb Foundation, Inc., 1989
- Amgen Fellowship Scholarship, American Association of Cancer Research, 1968
Alyssia O’Malley
Alyssia O’Malley
Alyssia O’Malley was working out and training for her physical training certificate when she noticed a tiny bump in the middle of her abdomen. “I thought it was a hernia from pushing myself too hard,” said Alyssia.
After numerous tests, Alyssia’s primary care doctor performed a biopsy on the mass in her abdomen. The biopsy results led to a PET scan that revealed cancerous nodules on her diaphragm in June 2014. At age 44, Alyssia was diagnosed with stage 4 retroperitoneal sarcoma.
Larry Reddick
Larry Reddick
In the fall of 2015, Larry Reddick, 74, was becoming increasingly frustrated with his hoarse voice. It was difficult to speak and his voice quality continued to get worse. He also began to lose weight without trying. “I had a hunch something wasn’t right so I called my primary doctor to get a referral to see an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist. Unfortunately, I didn’t find my local ENT helpful,” recalls Larry.
Michelle Palandro
Michelle Palandro
In the spring of 2011, Michelle Palandro noticed a hard bump on her hip so she had her doctor check it out. The doctor ordered an X-ray which showed “fatty tissue in normal limits.” She followed her doctor’s recommendation and didn't worry about it, especially because she was so healthy and active. Then in July, after a moderate mountain hike, she developed excruciating pain in her lower leg. She went to a general surgeon to have the growth removed the following month. Tests revealed she had malignant stage 3 liposarcoma, a type of tumor that grows within the fat cells in deep soft tissue.
Michelle Santangelo
Michelle Santangelo
In the spring of 2011, Michelle Santangelo noticed a hard bump on her hip, so she had her doctor check it out. The doctor ordered an X-ray which showed “fatty tissue in normal limits.” She followed her doctor’s recommendation, and didn't worry about it, especially because she was so healthy and active. Then in July, after a moderate mountain hike, she developed excruciating pain in her lower leg. She went to a general surgeon to have the growth removed the following month.
Robert Smith
Robert Smith
Robert W. Smith’s story has a happy ending, but began with fear and uncertainty. In 1998, almost out of the blue, he noticed a lump on the side of his torso. “I was 54 and healthy, and I just felt this lump,” he recalls. He went to a community hospital where doctors ordered testing. The pathology report confirmed that Bob had fibrous spindle cell sarcoma.
Pages
Research Interests
- Soft tissue and bone sarcomas
- Gastrointestinal stromal tumors
- Drug development
- Clinical trials
Selected Publications
Movva S, Wen W, Chen W, Millis SZ, Gatalica Z, Reddy S, von Mehren M, Van Tine BA. Multi-platform profiling of over 2000 sarcomas: Identification of biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets. Oncotargets 2015 Mar 26. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
von Mehren M, Bookman M, Meropol N, Weiner L, Sherman E, Li J, Knoblauch R, Parekh T, Cohen R. Phase I study of the safety and pharmacokinetics of trabectedin with docetaxel in patients with advanced malignancies. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology, 75(5):1047-55, 2015. PubMed
von Mehren M, Randall RL, Benjamin RS, Boles S, Bui MM, Casper ES, Conrad EU 3rd, DeLaney TF, Ganjoo KN, George S, Gonzalez RJ, Heslin MJ, Kane JM 3rd, Mayerson J, McGarry SV, Meyer C, O'Donnell RJ, Pappo AS, Paz IB, Pfeifer JD, Riedel RF, Schuetze S, Schupak KD, Schwartz HS, Van Tine BA, Wayne JD, Bergman MA, Sundar H. Gastrointestinal stromal tumors, version 2.2014. Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, 12(6):853-62, 2014. PubMed
von Mehren M, Randall RL, Benjamin RS, Boles S, Bui MM, Casper ES, Conrad EU, DeLaney TF, Ganjoo KN, George S, Gonzalez RJ, Heslin MJ, Kane JM, Mayerson J, McGarry SV, Meyer C, O'Donnell RJ, Pappo AS, Paz IB, Pfeifer JD, Riedel RF, Schuetze S, Schupak KD, Schwartz HS, Van Tine BA, Wayne JD, Bergman MA, Sundar H. Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Version 2.2014 Featured Updates to the NCCN Guidelines. Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, 12(4):473-83, 2014.
Hensley H, Devarajan K Johnson JR, Piwnica-Worms D, Godwin AK, von Mehren M, Rink L. Evaluating New Therapies in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor Using in vivo Molecular Optical Imaging. Cancer Biology and Therapeutics, 15(7):911-8, 2014. PubMed
Demetri G, Reichardt P, Kang Y-K, Blay JY, Rutkowski P, Gelderblom H, Hohenberger P, Leahy M, von Mehren M, Joensuu H, Badalamenti G, Blackstein M, Le Cesne A, Schffski P, Maki RG, Bauer S, Nguyen BB, Xu J, Nishida T, Chung J, Kappeler C, Kuss I, Laurent D, Casali PG. Efficacy and safety of regorafenib for advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours after failure of imatinib and sunitinib (GRID): an international, multicentre, randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial. Lancet, 381(9863):295-302. 2013. PubMed PMID: 23177515; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3819942.
Belinsky MG, Rink L, Flieder DB, Jahromi MS, Schiffman JD, Godwin AK, von Mehren M. Overexpression of insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor and frequent mutational inactivation of SDHA in wild-type SDHB-negative gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer, 52(2):214-24, 2013. PubMed PMID: 23109135; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3564228.
George S, Wang Q, Heinrich MC, Corless CL, Zhu M, Butrynski JE, Morgan JA, Wagner AJ, Choy E, Tap WD, Yap JT, Van den Abbeele AD, Manola JB, Solomon SM, Fletcher JA, von Mehren M, Demetri GD. Efficacy and safety of regorafenib in patients with metastatic and/or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) following failure of imatinib and sunitinib: a multicenter phase II trial. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 30(19):2401-7, 2012.
von Mehren M, Rankin C, Goldblum JR, Demetri GD, Bramwell V, Ryan CW, Borden E. Phase II SWOG-directed Intergroup Trial (S0505) of Sorafenib in Advanced Soft Tissue Sarcomas. Cancer, 118(3):770-6, 2012.
Demetri GD, Wang Y, Wehrle E, Racine, Nikolova Z, Blanke C, Joensuu H, von Mehren M. Imatinib Plasma Levels Correlate With Clinical Benefit in Patients With Unresectable/ Metastatic Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GIST). Journal of Clinical Oncology, 27(19):3141-7, 2009. Epub May 18 2009. PubMed PMID: 18942073; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2606912.
Eisenberg BL, Harris J, Blanke CD, Demetri GD, Heinrich MC, Watson JC, Hoffman JP, Okuno S, Kane JM, von Mehren M. Phase II trial of Neoadjuvant/Adjuvant Imatinib Mesylate for Advanced Primary and Metastatic/Recurrent Operable Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GIST) – early results of RTOG 0132. Journal of Surgical Oncology, 99(1):42-7, 2009. PubMed
Tarn C, Rink L, Merkel E, Flieder D, Parhak H, Koumbi D, Testa J, Eisenberg B, von Mehren M, Godwin A. Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 Receptor is a Potential Therapeutic Target for Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(24):8387-92. Epub 2008 Jun 11, 2008. PubMed PMID: 18550829; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2448846.
von Mehren M, Schilder RJ, Cheng J, Temmer E, Cardoso T, Renshaw G, Bayever E, Zannikos P, Yuan Z, Cohen RB. A Phase I Study of the Safety and Pharmacokinetics of Trabectedin in Combination With Pegylated Liposomal Doxorubicin in Patients With Advanced Malignancies. Annals of Oncology, 19(10):1802-9, 2008. PubMed PMID: 18497430; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC2598415.
Blanke CD*, Demetri GD*, von Mehren M*, Heinrich M, Eisenburg B, Fletcher J, Coreless C, Fletcher CD, Heinz D, Wehre E, Nikolova Z, Joensuu H*. Long Term Results from a Randomized Phase II Trial of Standard versus Higher Dose Imatinib Mesylate for Patients with Unresectable or Metastatic Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors Expressing KIT. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 16: 626-632, 2008.*Authors contributed equally to the article. PubMed
