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Louis Rapkin, MD
- Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Administrative Assistant: Dominique White
Rapkin attended Emory University for his undergraduate training, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine for his medical degree. His pediatric training was done at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, Texas and his Fellowship in Pediatric Hematology Oncology was done at St Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis Tennessee. Following his training, Rapkin returned to Emory University where he practiced for 15 years prior to moving to Pittsburgh and Joining the division of Pediatric Hematology Oncology at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh in 2017 as the Clinical Director of Pediatric Oncology.
Rapkin's clinical interests are focused on the treatment of rare tumors in pediatric oncology, primarily adult cancers (carcinomas) and soft tissue sarcomas. This nicely overlaps with his interest in Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) care. In addition, Dr. Rapkin has focused much of his career in medical student education.
Professional and Scientific Society Memberships
- American Academy of Pediatrics, 1999-Present
- Children’s Oncology Group, 2002-Present
- American Society of Pediatric Hematology Oncology, 2002-Present
- American Society of Hematology, 2002-Present
- American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2002-2010
- International Histiocyte Society, 2012-2015
- American Thyroid Association, 2011-2013
Education & Training
- BS, Emory University, 1991
- MD, University of Alabama School of Medicine, 1996
- Board Eligible, Baylor College of Medicine, 1999
- Board Eligible, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 2002
Selected Publications
McDonald MW, Esiashvili N, George BA, Katzenstein HM, Olson TA, Rapkin LB, Marcus RB Jr. Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy with Use of Cone-Down Boost for Pediatric Head-and-Neck Rhabdomyosarcoma. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2008 Mar;72(3):884-91.
Gow KW, Rapkin LB, Olson TA, Durham MM, Wyly B, Shehata BM. Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in the Pediatric Population. J Pediatr Surg. 2008 Dec;43(12):2193-2198.
Katzenstein HM, Petricca S, Ricketts R, Wasilewski-Masker K, Powell C, Rapkin L, George B, Woods WG, Olson TA. Intracavitary cisplatin therapy for pediatric malignancies. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2010 Sep;55(3):452-456.
Ghazi B, Carlson GW, Murray DR, Gow KW, Page A, Durham M, Kooby DA, Parker D, Rapkin L, Lawson DH, Delman KA. Utility of lymph node assessment for atypical spitzoid melanocytic neoplasms. Ann Surg Oncol. 2010 Sep;17(9):2471-2475.
August KJ, Dalton A, Katzenstein HM, George B, Olson TA, Wasilewski-Masker KJ, Rapkin LB, The Use of Zoledronic Acid in Pediatric Cancer Patients. Pediatr. Blood Cancer 2011 Apr;56(4):610-614.
Rapkin L, Qayed M, Brill P, Martin M, Clark D, George B, Olson TA, Wasilewski-Masker K, Alazraki A, Katzenstein H. Gemcitabine and Docetaxel for the Treatment of Relapsed and Refractory Pediatric Sarcomas. Pediatr. Blood Cancer 2012 Nov;59(5):854-858.
Neuwelt AJ, Nguyen T, Wu YJ, Donsom AM, Vibhakar R, Venkatamaran S, Armani V, Neuwelt EA, Rapkin LB, Foreman NK. Preclinical High-Dose Acetaminophen with N-acetylcysteine Rescue Enhances the Efficacy of Cisplatin Chemotherapy in Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumors. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2014 Jan; 61(1):120-127.
Cash T, Qayed M, Ward KC, Mertens AC, Rapkin L. Comparison of Survival at Adult versus Pediatric Treatment Centers for Rare Pediatric Tumors is an Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Population in the State of Georgia. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2015 Mar; 62(3):456-462.
DeRenzo C, Lam C, Rodriguez-Galindo C, Rapkin L, Gottschalk S, Venkatramani R. Salvage regimens for pediatric patients with relapsed nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2018 Oct;66(1):e27469.
Close A, Dreyzin A, Miller K, Seynnavae B, Rapkin LB. Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology - Past, Present and Future. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 2019 Nov;69(6):485-496.