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Nicholas A Vitanza, MD

Pronouns: He/Him/His
Accepting New Patients
Nicholas A Vitanza, MD

Specialties

  • Children's Title: Attending Pediatric Neuro-Oncologist, Cancer and Blood Disorders Center
  • Academic Title: Associate Professor, Hematology/Oncology
  • Research Title: Principal Investigator, Ben Towne Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders Research
  • Research Center: Ben Towne Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders Research
  • On Staff Since: August 2016
"My goal is to find safer and more effective therapies for children with central nervous system (CNS) tumors (meaning, tumors of the brain and spine). As a pediatric neuro-oncologist, translational scientist, Scientific Direct of the Brain Tumor Program, and the CAR T cell Lead, I am fortunate to span the intersection where laboratory science translates into new clinical trials. Our work has helped advance epigenetically-targeted drugs and targeted immunotherapies – such as CAR T cells – to the clinic for patients with fatal tumors such as diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), diffuse midline glioma (DMG), and atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT). Overseeing our multiple open CNS CAR T cell trials has allowed me to connect with in need families from all over the world and our pledge is to provide expert, compassionate care to each child we meet."

  • Biography

    Dr. Nicholas Vitanza is a pediatric neuro-oncologist and translational scientist whose career is dedicated to the care of children with fatal brain and spinal cord tumors, particularly diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), diffuse midline glioma H3K27M-altered (DMG), and atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT). During his pediatric oncology fellowship with Drs. Bill Carroll and Elizabeth Raetz at New York University, his laboratory projects led to a COG clinical trial and an ASPHO award. Next, he completed another fellowship in pediatric neuro-oncology at Stanford University and a post-doc in Michelle Monje’s neuroscience/DIPG Lab, in which he performed high-throughput drug screens in patient-derived DIPG models and mechanistic analyses of epigenetic vulnerabilities in DIPG. This work led to publications in Cancer Cell and Science Translational Medicine, as well as a phase 1 clinical trial.

    In 2016, Dr. Vitanza joined the faculty at Seattle Children’s Hospital and directs the Vitanza Lab, focused on creating treatment-naïve biopsy-derived patient-derived DIPG/DMG models, discovering targetable molecular and immunologic vulnerabilities in these tumors, and translating these findings into innovative new clinical trials. Dr. Vitanza serves as the Scientific Director of the Brain Tumor Research Program, overseeing a dedicated research program spanning laboratory work to patient care, and CNS CAR T Cell Lead, overseeing CAR T cell trials for brain and spinal cord tumor patients. He has written and directed multiple CNS CAR T cell clinical trials including BrainChild-01 (targeting HER2), BrainChild-02 (targeted EGFR), BrainChild-03 (targeting B7-H3), and BrainChild-04 (multi-antigen targeting of HER, EGFR, B7-H3, and IL-13ra2).

    Dr. Vitanza's translational research has been published in multiple leading journals, including Cancer Cell, Cancer Discovery, Nature Medicine, and Neuro-Oncology. He has shared his work at a range of national and international conferences and was honored to be an invited researcher to the Cancer Moonshot Brain Tumor Forum at the White House in 2023.

    Ultimately, his goal is to better understand vulnerabilities in DIPG, DMG, and ATRT; translate those scientific discoveries into improved outcomes for affected children; and ultimately cure the remaining incurable CNS tumors of childhood.

    Board Certification(s)

    Pediatrics
    Pediatric Hematology-Oncology

    Clinical Interests

    Brain and spinal cord tumors of childhood; diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG); diffuse midline glioma (DMG); CAR T cell immunotherapy; early phase clinical trials

    Research Description

    My laboratory research focuses on developing new, targeted drugs and CAR T cell therapies against pediatric brain and spinal cord tumors, particularly diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), diffuse midline glioma (DMG), and atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT).

    Research Focus Area

    DIPG, DMG, ATRT, CAR T cell therapy, epigenetics, early phase clinical trials

  • Related Resources

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  • Awards and Honors

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  • Publications

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Contact Information

Primary Office

Seattle Children's - Vitanza Lab
1900 9th Ave
JMB 8.28
Seattle, WA 98101
Tel: 206-884-4084

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