School of Medicine

Kelley Ann Mullen, senior director of scheduling services and service quality for Washington University School of Medicine’s faculty practice, died at her home Tuesday, May 21, 2019, after a brief illness. A deeply kind, calming and dedicated leader, Mullen was beloved by her colleagues. She was 57.

A study from researchers at the School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System has linked long-term use of drugs known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) to fatal cases of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease and upper gastrointestinal cancer. The researchers found that such risks increase with the duration of PPI use, even when taken at low doses.

Researchers at the School of Medicine studying brain tumors in mice discovered that tumors grow most rapidly if they can enlist the aid of immune cells. The findings suggest that therapies targeting immune cells could potentially treat some kinds of brain tumors.

Researchers at the School of Medicine are leading a multicenter team conducting research to evaluate whether brain imaging might help reveal risk for autism spectrum disorder in early infancy. Previous research suggests such imaging in high-risk children can predict problems in kids as young as 6 months old.

The Academy of Science-St. Louis recently honored Washington University Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton for his leadership in science and three researchers at the School of Medicine — Susan K. Dutcher, Anne M. Fagan and Samantha A. Morris — for their work as outstanding scientists.

A gift from Walter Metcalfe Jr. and his wife, Cynthia, will support the work of School of Medicine child psychiatrist Joan Luby, MD, and her collaborators. The gift was inspired by promising early findings suggesting interventions to address the impact of toxic stress on the long-term behavioral and mental health of children.

A new study led by the School of Medicine has found that proton therapy is associated with fewer severe side effects than conventional X-ray radiation therapy for many cancer patients.

David H. Perlmutter, MD, executive vice chancellor for medical affairs and the George and Carol Bauer Dean of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has received the Christopher Hobler Spirit of Hope Award in recognition of his advocacy for neurological research.

Gammon Earhart, director of the Program in Physical Therapy at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association.

Alexandra Keane, who earned a doctor of medicine degree, told fellow members of Class of 2019 to nurture their creative thinking. “Entering a continually moving world, I hope we unplug, indulge in the stillness and feed our imaginative spirit, for this may generate our own Newtonian flash of discovery,” she said.