Daniel S. Wechsler, MD, PhD

Research Program

Discovery and Developmental Therapeutics
Phone Number

404-785-1112

Biography

Daniel S. Wechsler, MD, PhD, is the director of pediatric oncology at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Dr. Wechsler comes to the Aflac Cancer Center having previously served as associate professor of pediatrics, and pharmacology and cell biology at Duke University School of Medicine. A board-certified pediatric oncologist, he specializes in the treatment of childhood leukemia.

Dr. Wechsler is a member of the Discovery and Developmental Therapeutics Research Program at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University.

Education

Dr. Wechsler received his medical degree as well as his PhD in Physiology from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He completed his residency in pediatrics and a fellowship in pediatric hematology/oncology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

Titles & Roles

Director of Pediatric Oncology

Emory University School of Medicine
Professor, Department of Pediatrics

Emory University School of Medicine
Thomas R. Giddens Chair for Oncology

Emory University School of Medicine and Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center

Professional Memberships

Dr. Wechsler holds professional memberships with the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, American Society of Hematology and Children's Oncology Group.

Research

The primary focus of Dr. Wechsler's laboratory is an investigation of the pathogenesis of CALM-AF10 leukemias. They were the first to describe a translocation between MLL and CALM genes in an infant with acute myeloid leukemia, and from this stemmed their interest in understanding the more common CALM-AF10 leukemias. They determined that CALM contains a nuclear export signal (NES) that is critical for its role in leukemogenesis, and furthermore, that the presence of the NES mediated CALM's interaction with CRM1. They found that CRM1 directly associates with HOXA genes, which are critical effectors of leukemogenesis, suggesting that CRM1 may be important for other types of leukemia. The availability of compounds that inhibit CRM1 activity (Selective Inhibitors of Nuclear Export - SINEs) raises the possibility of a novel therapeutic intervention for aggressive CRM1- and HOXAdependent leukemias.

Publications

Title/Journal	Authors	Publication Date
Identification of leukemia-enriched signature through the development of a comprehensive pediatric single-cell atlas. Nature communications	HL Mumme, C Huang, D Ohlstrom, M Bakhtiari, SS Raikar, D DeRyckere, M Qayed, SM Castellino, DS Wechsler, CC Porter, DK Graham, SS Bhasin, M Bhasin	05/02/2025
Azacitidine as epigenetic priming for chemotherapy is safe and well-tolerated in infants with newly diagnosed KMT2A-rearranged acute lymphoblastic leukemia: Children's Oncology Group trial AALL15P1. Haematologica	EM Guest, JA Kairalla, M Devidas, E Hibbitts, AJ Carroll, NA Heerema, HR Kubaney, MA August, S Ramesh, B Yoo, MS Farooqi, MG Pauly, DS Wechsler, RR Miles, JM Reid, CD Kihei, L Gore, EA Raetz, SP Hunger, ML Loh, PA Brown	12/01/2024
Prototypical innate immune mechanism hijacked by leukemia-initiating mutant stem cells for selective advantage and immune evasion in Ptpn11-associated juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia. Research square	H Zheng, P Zhao, Z Tan, WM Yu, J Werner, E Stieglitz, C Porter, S Chandrakasan, D Wechsler, S Mendez-Ferrer, CK Qu	08/02/2024
Novel-and Not So Novel-Inhibitors of the Multifunctional CRM1 Protein. Oncology reviews	WK Aumann, R Kazi, AM Harrington, DS Wechsler	01/01/2024
Single-cell RNA sequencing distinctly characterizes the wide heterogeneity in pediatric mixed phenotype acute leukemia. Genome medicine	HL Mumme, SS Raikar, SS Bhasin, BE Thomas, T Lawrence, EP Weinzierl, Y Pang, D DeRyckere, C Gawad, DS Wechsler, CC Porter, SM Castellino, DK Graham, M Bhasin	10/16/2023
Single-cell analysis reveals altered tumor microenvironments of relapse- and remission-associated pediatric acute myeloid leukemia. Nature communications	H Mumme, BE Thomas, SS Bhasin, U Krishnan, B Dwivedi, P Perumalla, D Sarkar, GB Ulukaya, HS Sabnis, SI Park, D DeRyckere, SS Raikar, M Pauly, RJ Summers, SM Castellino, DS Wechsler, CC Porter, DK Graham, M Bhasin	10/05/2023
Comprehensive Genomic Profiling of High-Risk Pediatric Cancer Patients Has a Measurable Impact on Clinical Care. JCO precision oncology	RJ Summers, SM Castellino, CC Porter, TJ MacDonald, GD Basu, S Szelinger, MK Bhasin, T Cash, AB Carter, RC Castellino, JR Fangusaro, SG Mitchell, MG Pauly, B Pencheva, DS Wechsler, DK Graham, KC Goldsmith	04/01/2022
Multicenter Analysis of Genomically Targeted Single Patient Use Requests for Pediatric Neoplasms. Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology	HS Sabnis, DS Shulman, B Mizukawa, N Bouvier, A Zehir, J Fangusaro, VA Fabrizio, C Whitlow, M Winchester, L Agresta, B Turpin, DS Wechsler, SG DuBois, J Glade-Bender, SM Castellino, N Shukla	12/01/2021
Caught in the In-Between: Challenges in Treating Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer. JCO oncology practice	SK Janardan, DS Wechsler	06/01/2021
Neonatal Malignant Tumors. Clinics in perinatology	DS Wechsler	03/01/2021
Fusion of the CRM1 nuclear export receptor to AF10 causes leukemia and transcriptional activation of HOXA genes. Leukemia	WK Aumann, JL Heath, AE Conway, SK Sze, VK Gupta, RR Kazi, DR Tope, DS Wechsler, CP Lavau	03/01/2021
Covid-19 will not "magically disappear": Why access to widespread testing is paramount. American journal of hematology	PE George, CL Stokes, LC Bassit, A Chahroudi, J Figueroa, MA Griffiths, S Heilman, DN Ku, EJ Nehl, T Leong, JM Levy, R Kempker, RG Mannino, M Mavigner, SI Park, A Rao, PA Rebolledo, JD Roback, BB Rogers, RF Schinazi, J Sullivan, EA Tyburski, MB Vos, JJ Waggoner, YF Wang, J Madsen, DS Wechsler, CH Joiner, GS Martin, WA Lam	02/01/2021
Retrospective Diagnosis of Ataxia-Telangiectasia in an Adolescent Patient With a Remote History of T-Cell Leukemia. Journal of pediatric hematology/oncology	SK Sze, HM Lederman, TO Crawford, MF Wangler, AM Lewis, MB Kastan, HK Dibra, AMR Taylor, DS Wechsler	01/01/2021
Very late recurrence of B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia masquerading as a pituitary tumor. Pediatric hematology and oncology	DM Fridlyand, FG Keller, HS Sabnis, BC Patterson, JA Gadde, JH Peragallo, V Biousse, DS Wechsler	08/01/2020
Leukoerythroblastosis as an Unusual Presentation of Parvovirus B19 Infection in a Sickle Cell Patient. Case reports in pediatrics	PA Patel, EP Weinzierl, DS Wechsler	01/01/2020
The SQSTM1-NUP214 fusion protein interacts with Crm1, activates Hoxa and Meis1 genes, and drives leukemogenesis in mice. PloS one	CP Lavau, WK Aumann, SK Sze, V Gupta, K Ripple, SA Port, RH Kehlenbach, DS Wechsler	01/01/2020
Favorable response to nivolumab in a young adult patient with metastatic histiocytic sarcoma. Pediatric blood & cancer	S Bose, J Robles, CM McCall, AS Lagoo, DS Wechsler, GR Schooler, D Van Mater	01/01/2019
FOXO3a-dependent up-regulation of Mxi1-0 promotes hypoxia-induced apoptosis in endothelial cells. Cellular signalling	Z Hu, F Wang, Z Wu, H Gu, N Dong, X Jiang, J Xu, Z Wu, DS Wechsler, D Zheng	11/01/2018
Wilms Tumor After Orthotopic Liver Transplant in a Patient With Alagille Syndrome. Urology	EC Carlos, D Ajay, S Muniz-Alers, DS Wechsler, DV Sushama, HE Rice, J Madden, JC Routh	11/01/2018
Isolated Central Nervous System Chloroma as a Presenting Sign of Relapsed Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Journal of pediatric hematology/oncology	JL Heath, WK Aumann, CM Maxfield, DS Wechsler	10/01/2018
Pediatric Cancer in Northern Tanzania: Evaluation of Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcomes. Journal of global oncology	K Schroeder, A Saxton, J McDade, C Chao, N Masalu, C Chao, DS Wechsler, B Likonda, N Chao	09/01/2018
Looking beyond the exome: a phenotype-first approach to molecular diagnostic resolution in rare and undiagnosed diseases. Genetics in medicine : official journal of the American College of Medical Genetics	LDM Pena, YH Jiang, K Schoch, RC Spillmann, N Walley, N Stong, S Rapisardo Horn, JA Sullivan, A McConkie-Rosell, S Kansagra, EC Smith, M El-Dairi, J Bellet, MA Keels, J Jasien, PG Kranz, R Noel, SK Nagaraj, RK Lark, DSG Wechsler, D Del Gaudio, ML Leung, LG Hendon, CC Parker, KL Jones, DB Goldstein, V Shashi	04/01/2018
Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology, Version 2.2018, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network : JNCCN	PF Coccia, AS Pappo, L Beaupin, VF Borges, SC Borinstein, R Chugh, S Dinner, J Folbrecht, AL Frazier, R Goldsby, A Gubin, R Hayashi, MS Huang, MP Link, JA Livingston, Y Matloub, F Millard, KC Oeffinger, D Puccetti, D Reed, S Robinson, AR Rosenberg, T Sanft, HL Spraker-Perlman, M von Mehren, DS Wechsler, KF Whelan, N Yeager, LA Gurski, DA Shead	01/01/2018