Mark W. Kieran

Mark W. Kieran, MD, PhD is a preeminent pediatric neuro-oncologist whose clinical and translational work at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Boston Children's Hospital defined the modern treatment paradigm for pediatric low-grade gliomas (pLGG). He was a pioneer in recognizing BRAF alterations—including KIAA1549-BRAF fusion and BRAF V600E—as the dominant oncogenic drivers of pediatric gliomas and led early clinical trials of BRAF inhibitors (dabrafenib) and MEK inhibitors (trametinib, selumetinib) in children with recurrent or progressive pLGG. His work provided the preclinical and clinical evidence that led to the FDA approval of selumetinib (koselugo) in NF1-associated pLGG in 2020 and subsequent approvals of dabrafenib/trametinib for pediatric BRAF V600E-mutant gliomas. He has also contributed substantially to understanding the biology and therapy of DIPG and other high-grade pediatric brain tumors, leading early-phase combination trials.