Dr. Joseph Stokes Jr. spent most of his career at CHOP studying infectious diseases, with a focus on vaccine development. As CHOP’s second physician-in-chief (1939 to 1961), he is credited with transforming the hospital into a world leader in pediatric research and education.

Described as a kind, yet commanding, administrator and distinguished scientist, Dr. Stokes Jr. made time for daily rounds and lunches with the residents. Through the years, he assembled a brilliant staff and encouraged multidisciplinary and institutional collaboration.

Dr. Charles Chapple, who first came to CHOP in 1929 as a resident, invented a new incubator that minimized the major perils that threatened premature infants. Dr. Chapple’s incubator represented a major advance over earlier incubators.

His invention was designed to protect infants from airborne infections by sealing them off from the outside environment in a chamber with controlled temperature, humidity, and oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. With his design, the infants were fully visible and could be touched and taken care of through a set of attached sleeves.

After World War II, Dr. Chapple became senior physician at CHOP and redesigned his invention by using plastic. The new device, the Infant Incubator Model C 35, generally known as the “Isolette,” was introduced to a congress of American pediatricians in 1947.

The Clinical Research Center (CRC) merged with a similar program at the University of Pennsylvania to form the Center for Human Phenomic Science, which aims to provide the resources, environment, operations, and training to support and promote high-quality clinical and translational research. The Center has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for more than 50 years.

The Henle-Hummeler scientific team also found the connection between EBV and the development of Burkitt’s lymphoma. This was the first time a virus had been shown to cause cancer. They did all this before molecular technology transformed the field of virology.

Paul Offit, MD, director of the Vaccine Education Center at CHOP; Stanley Plotkin, MD, emeritus professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania; and H. Fred Clark, PhD, (deceased) then a research professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania; are credited with development of the vaccine. They received the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Gold Medal for their work.

Rotavirus causes life-threatening diarrhea and vomiting, and prior to the vaccine it was the leading cause of severe diarrhea among infants and young children in the U.S. Each year, the vaccine prevents an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 hospitalizations. In 2013, the World Health Organization recommended RotaTeq for all children in the world.

Dr. Offit’s interest in developing this vaccine resulted when he was a resident in the late 1970s, and a 9-month-old infant in his care died of rotavirus. This sparked a 25-year research journey that culminated with the development of RotaTeq.

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Tisagenlecleucel or Kymriah®, was the first CAR T-cell treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2017. More than 440 patients at CHOP have been treated with this therapy, as well as thousands of pediatric patients around the world.

CAR T-cell therapy, pioneered by University of Pennsylvania and CHOP scientists, utilizes patients’ own immune cells to kill cancer cells. Physicians collect T cells from the patient, reprogram them in the lab to identify cancerous B cells, and put them back in the body to attach to the cancer cells and destroy them. CHOP’s research in this therapy has continued, and researchers are trying to harness their power to attack solid tumors.

Standing at 14 stories with 350,000-square feet of space, a new state-of-the-art research building alongside Philadelphia's Schuylkill River will continue CHOP’s century-long commitment to advancing children’s health through cutting-edge research. Developers broke ground on the newest addition to CHOP’s family of research buildings Oct. 12, with a completion date planned for 2025.

“This building is an important part of our strategy to advance research at CHOP,” said Doug Hock, CHOP executive vice president and chief operating officer, at the groundbreaking ceremony. “It will make it easier for our teams to collaborate on the bench-to-bedside strategy CHOP is known for. It will help us attract and retain the very best scientists. Scientists will bring us their best ideas, and we will give them the resources they need to turn those ideas into breakthroughs. This building is one of those resources. It will make it possible to translate their discoveries into new treatments to change children’s lives.”