Dr. Malcolm Brenner recipient of Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium Lifetime Achievement Award

HOUSTON - (Feb. 13, 2014) - Renowned cell and gene therapy researcher Dr. Malcolm Brenner, founding director of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children's Hospital and Houston Methodist Hospital, has been named a recipient of the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium's Lifetime Achievement Award.


As the sixth recipient of the award, Brenner is being recognized for a career that exemplifies the mission of the Consortium "to support research and education to improve the availability, safety, and efficacy of hematopoietic cell transplantation and other cellular therapeutics for children and adolescents."


Brenner is a professor of medicine, pediatrics - hematology/oncology and molecular and human genetics at Baylor, and in addition to remaining a member of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, is a member of the Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center, Texas Children's Cancer and Hematology Centers, and the NCI-designated Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center at Baylor.


In his over 30-year career, Brenner has led groundbreaking clinical studies and clinical care, trained and mentored fellows and residents, and fostered basic research into pediatric bone marrow transplantation, gene therapy and cellular therapy.


He has pioneered the use of gene transfer in human studies.


"His dedication to gene therapy has been instrumental in making strides toward the use of gene transfer to augment the immune response to human tumors, using vaccines and adoptive transfer of genetically modified t-cells," the Consortium said in announcing his award.


Brenner received his medical and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Cambridge in London, England. He completed fellowships with the Royal College of Pathologists and the Royal College of Physicians.


The Consortium is comprised of more than 100 pediatric bone marrow transplant centers in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, with affiliate members in Europe, South America and Southeast Asia. They are the largest clinical trials group focused exclusively on blood and marrow transplants for children and adolescents.


Brenner will receive the award Feb. 27 at the 2014 Tandem BMT Meetings of the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation and the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research to be held in Grapevine, Texas. He will give a special lecture outlining some of his achievements as well as a challenge to the bone marrow transplant community regarding important areas of future research.

About Texas Children’s Hospital

Texas Children’s Hospital, a not-for-profit health care organization, is committed to creating a healthier future for children and women throughout the global community by leading in patient care, education and research. Consistently ranked as the best children’s hospital in Texas, and among the top in the nation, Texas Children’s has garnered widespread recognition for its expertise and breakthroughs in pediatric and women’s health. The hospital includes the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute; the Feigin Center for pediatric research; Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women, a comprehensive obstetrics/gynecology facility focusing on high-risk births; Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus, a community hospital in suburban West Houston; and Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands, a second community hospital planned to open in 2017. The organization also created the nation’s first HMO for children, has the largest pediatric primary care network in the country and a global health program that’s channeling care to children and women all over the world. Texas Children’s Hospital is affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine. For more information, go to www.texaschildrens.org. Get the latest news by visiting the online newsroom and Twitter at twitter.com/texaschildrens.