Lisa Wray, MD

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Lisa Wray, MD, is a physician with the Cancer Center, the Cancer Immunotherapy Program, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Program and the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Locations: Main Hospital

Appointments and Referrals: 1-800-TRY-CHOP (1-800-879-2467)

Background

Lisa Wray, MD, is a board-certified pediatric hematologist-oncologist and an attending physician with the Cancer Center. She specializes in caring for children with cancer who are undergoing stem cell transplant or CAR T-cell therapy and pursues research with the goal of improving the results of those therapies.

For Dr. Wray, choosing a specialty in pediatric oncology came from a very personal experience – in college, a close childhood friend of hers died from cancer. “I wanted to care for others as I wish he had been cared for and advance care for pediatric oncology patients as a whole,” says Dr. Wray.

She is particularly excited by the progress the scientific community is making in treating childhood cancers, especially with stem cell transplant and CAR T-cell therapies. “I am fascinated by the science underlying these therapies which continues to rapidly evolve,” Dr. Wray says.

A scientist at heart, she doesn’t lose sight of the individual needs of each patient. “We have an incredible spectrum of people and services caring for every patient. We attempt to care for every patient and family as we would care for our own,” she says.

Dr. Wray earned her medical degree at Temple University School of Medicine and completed her pediatric residency, as well as a Hematology/Oncology fellowship at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is currently an associate professor of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Wray has published several papers and presented on various topics within oncology; she also served for four years on the Expert Review Board for KidsHealth.org.  She is a long-standing member of the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT), American Society of Hematology (ASH) and the Children's Oncology Group (COG).

Dr. Wray’s current research focuses on improving stem cell transplant and CAR T-cell therapies. Within the realm of stem cell transplants, her work is aimed at optimizing nutrition for patients undergoing transplant. Regarding CAR T-cell therapy, she is interested by how the immune system is affected by, and recovers following, the therapy. “I’m excited to see CAR T-cell therapies be used to treat an ever-expanding range of diagnoses,” she says.

Education and Training

Medical School

MD - Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA

Internship

Pediatrics - Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA

Residency

Pediatrics - Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA

Fellowship

Hematology/Oncology - Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA

Board Certification

Pediatric Hematology-Oncology – American Board of Pediatrics
Pediatrics – American Board of Pediatrics

Titles and Academic Titles

Attending Physician

Fellowship Director, Cancer Immunotherapy

Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Departments and Services

Publications

Papers

2015

Vujkovic M, Kershenbaum A, Wray L, McWilliams T, Cannon S, Devidas M, Stork L, Aplenc R.: Associations between genetic variants in folate and drug metabolizing pathways and relapse risk in pediatric acute lymphoid leukemia on CCG-1952. Leukemia Research Reports 4(2): 47-50, Jul 2015. PMCID: PMC4621538

2014

Wray L, Vujkovic M, McWilliams T, Cannon S, Devidas M, Stork L, Aplenc R.: TPMT and MTHFR genotype is not associated with altered risk of thioguanine-related sinusoidal obstruction syndrome in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: a report from the Children's Oncology Group. Pediatric Blood & Cancer 61(11): 2086-8, Nov 2014. PMCID: PMC4283196

2005

Smith K, Wray L, Klein-Cabral M, Schuchter L, Fox K, Glick J, DeMichele A.: Ethnic disparities in adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer are not caused by excess toxicity in black patients. Clinical Breast Cancer 6(3): 260-9, Aug 2005.

2003

DeMichele A, Martin AM, Mick R, Gor P, Wray L, Klein-Cabral M, Athanasiadis G, Colligan T, Stadtmauer E, Weber B.: Interleukin-6 -174G-->C polymorphism is associated with improved outcome in high-risk breast cancer. Cancer Research 63(22): 8051-6, Nov 2003.

Posters and Presentations

2019

Wray L, Miller E, Musheno R, Parikh S. The -ibs, -abs and Beyond: Immunotherapies for Pediatric Cancer Treatment and What They Mean for Pain and Symptom Management and Patient Prognosis. Oral presentation, Annual Assembly of Hospice and Palliative Care, Orlando, FL. March 2019.

2017

Fraint E, Wray L, Miller E.: Emotional Reactions and Coping Mechanisms of Pediatric Residents to Patient Deaths. Poster presentation, American Academy of Pediatrics, Chicago, IL. September 2017.

Awards and Honors

2013 & 2014, Faculty Educator of the Month Award, selected by Pediatric Residents, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
2010-2012, Hyundai Hope on Wheels Scholar Grant

Editorial and Academic Positions

Editorial Positions

2014-2018, Expert Review Board, KidsHealth.org

Leadership and Memberships

Memberships in Professional Organizations

International 

2009-present, Children's Oncology Group (COG)

National

2010-present, American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT)
2010-present, American Society of Hematology (ASH)