Breaking Through With Madeline Bell

What makes COVID-19 different from other infectious diseases? Pediatric infectious disease specialist Dr. Susan Coffin, discusses her research on how the SARS-CoV-2 virus is transmitted, talks about how the virus affects children, and shares advice to help parents and families make decisions about everything from playdates to sports.

While many institutions across the country were modeling the trajectory of COVID-19 at the national level, Dr. David Rubin, and his colleagues at CHOP’s PolicyLab took a more innovative approach: They mapped the spread of the virus at the county level. More than 500 U.S. counties are included in the PolicyLab model, which has been used by local and state policymakers, as well as the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Dr. Rubin discusses how the model came to fruition and shares the most surprising – and important – thing researchers have learned from it.

Testing is one of the most important tools we have to track and stop the spread of COVID-19, but it comes with many challenges. Dr. Rebecca Harris, Director of CHOP’s Infectious Disease Diagnostics Laboratory, shares the story of how CHOP developed its own COVID-19 test early in the pandemic and describes how her team is finding ways to do more tests, faster, as the pandemic continues.

Could dogs’ noses hold the answer to a better COVID-19 diagnostic test? Dr. Audrey Odom John, Chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at CHOP, discusses her efforts to develop a COVID-19 breathalyzer test with help from some four-legged friends – and shares the questions CHOP researchers most want to answer about the disease.

In the spring, doctors began noticing a mysterious inflammatory condition in children that involved fever, rashes, diarrhea and vomiting. Now known as Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children, or MIS-C, the rare syndrome seems to be a postviral inflammatory response to COVID-19. Dr. Edward Behrens, Chief of the Division of Rheumatology and Director of the Immune Dysregulation Frontier Program, discusses what his team has discovered about MIS-C and what gives him hope for the future.

In “Where We Are Now,” a five-episode special series, Madeline Bell speaks with five CHOP researchers about the COVID-19-related work they are leading – and about what gives them hope during this challenging time. With episodes focused on everything from a modeling tool that forecasts the spread of the virus across more than 500 U.S. counties to a unique COVID-19 test developed in the CHOP labs, the series takes listeners on a journey from the beginning of the pandemic to where we are now.

Join Madeline in CHOP’s “lab of the future” in the Leonard and Madlyn Abramson Pediatric Research Center. As Director of the Raymond G. Perelman Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics and Chief Scientific Strategy Officer at CHOP, Dr. Davidson is developing innovative gene therapies to treat inherited brain disorders. Listen in as she talks to Madeline about everything from her earliest breakthrough moment to what it’s like to be a woman in a male-dominated field. You can learn more about supporting research and discovery at CHOP here. #ForBreakthroughs

Ever wondered what informatics is or how CHOP is using it? Get a peek behind the curtain with CHOP’s Chief Health Informatics Officer, Dr. Bimal Desai. Madeline dives into some of CHOP’s most innovative ideas using technology, like bedside cameras for families to check in on their babies, and what is next for our patients. Learn more about supporting research and discovery at CHOP here. #ForBreakthroughs

Madeline has an in-depth conversation with Dr. Christina Master about CHOP’s interdisciplinary approach to concussion, including exciting, cutting-edge diagnosis and treatment options. Concussion Care for Kids: Minds Matter is a specialized program developed to help families, healthcare providers, school staff and coaches recognize the signs and symptoms of concussion and support children's physician-guided recovery. Learn more about supporting research and discovery at CHOP here. #ForBreakthroughs

Every day approximately 700 CHOP employees go to work in the Leonard and Madlyn Abramson Pediatric Research Center, our first research building – one of them is Madeline. She sits down with Leonard to talk about his family’s 30-year relationship with the hospital and how their support has fueled breakthroughs and innovation. To find out how you can help fuel tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

At Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), researchers and doctors are working side by side to improve outcomes for children with brain tumors. In honor of Brain Tumor Awareness Month, Madeline recently sat down with Dr. Phillip “Jay” Storm, Chief of CHOP’s Division of Neurosurgery, and Dr. Adam Resnick, a research scientist at CHOP, to talk about how they are using genetic information to match patients with the best brain tumor treatments – and how philanthropy is fueling these breakthroughs. To help fund groundbreaking research at CHOP, visit give.chop.edu.

April is World Autism Awareness Month, and here at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Madeline is serving as Honorary Captain for the Eagles Autism Challenge, a bike ride and run/walk that will be held in Philadelphia on May 18. The money raised at the challenge will help our scientists make breakthroughs for children with autism – and in this special episode, Madeline speaks to one of those scientists, Dr. Julia Parish-Morris. For more information on how you can join or donate to the Eagles Autism Challenge, please visit EaglesAutismChallenge.Org.

The lymphatic system is something we all have in our bodies, but very little is known about it. In this episode, Madeline is joined by Dr. Yoav Dori, Director of Pediatric Lymphatic Imaging and Interventions and Lymphatic Research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Dori and his team have developed advanced technologies to diagnose and treat life-threatening diseases of the lymphatic system.  To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

In this episode, Madeline is joined by Dr. Hakon Hakonarson, the founder and director of the Center for Applied Genomics (CAG) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Dr. Hakonarson leads one of the world’s largest genetics research programs. His team is working to identify the genes that cause complex medical disorders in children and looking for the genetic causes of cancer, autism, diabetes, obesity, schizophrenia, ADHD and autoimmune disorders – to name just a few. These are very different diseases, but CAG’s objective is the same in each case: to use their discoveries to develop new diagnostic tests and new therapies for pediatric diseases. To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

In part 2 of a special two-part episode, Madeline is rejoined by four female scientists from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Deborah French, Dr. Allison Curry, Dr. Renata Pellegrino da Silva and Dr. Julia Parish-Morris talk about their own personal journeys and offer advice to aspiring scientists.  To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

Teams at CHOP have been making amazing scientific breakthroughs for more than 160 years. Many of those teams are led by women who have inspired other women to choose careers in healthcare and science. In part 1 of a special two-part episode, Madeline speaks to four female scientists from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia: Dr. Deborah French, Dr. Allison Curry, Dr. Renata Pellegrino da Silva and Dr. Julia Parish-Morris. Their discoveries are making a difference for children and families around the world.  To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

Abby and Erin Delaney were born in the Garbose Family Special Delivery Unit at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia on July 24, 2016. The twins had a very rare condition called craniopagus – which means they were connected at the tops of their heads. In this episode, Madeline talks to Dr. Gregory Heuer and Dr. Jesse Taylor, who led the incredible team of nearly 30 people that successfully separated the twins during an 11-hour surgery. Madeline also gets an update on how Abby and Erin are doing today. To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.

In this episode, Madeline talks to one of her personal heroes, Dr. Lucy Rorke-Adams, a pioneer in the field of neuropathology. Dr. Rorke-Adams’ career at CHOP spanned 50 years, and she retired just three years ago at age 86. There isn’t much she hasn’t seen – she even examined Albert Einstein’s brain! To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.  

September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and organizations and advocates from across the country are working together to advance the conversation about behavioral health. Tami Benton, MD, Psychiatrist-in-Chief and Chair of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), joins Madeline to discuss initiatives CHOP is leading to prevent suicide and address the growing demand for pediatric behavioral health services. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.

In this episode of Breaking Through, Madeline speaks with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) researchers Stefano Rivella, PhD, and William Peranteau, MD, about gene therapy and fetal bone marrow transplants to cure sickle cell disease. She also talks about how CHOP’s Daisy Days fundraising campaign is fueling their research. To find out how you can help make tomorrow’s breakthroughs at CHOP, click here.