ISPNO 2020 Award Recipients
Lifetime Achievement Award
Roger J. Packer, MD
It is with great enthusiasm that the members of the ISPNO community have decide to oﬀer this ﬁrst Lifetime Achievement
Award to Dr. Roger Packer.
Dr. Packer started his career in Philadelphia, in 1981. He very quickly became one of the leaders of this small communityof oncology specialists interested in pediatric brain tumors. Over the years, he came to inﬂuence the management ofmost pediatric brain tumors, many of the protocols he developed being commonly referred to as the “Packer regimens”.
The description of Dr. Packerʼs multiple contributions to the field of pediatric neuro-oncology could span entire
chapters. He has been and still remains an active, passionate and dedicated member of the COG and several national orinternational networks, such as the Neuroﬁbromatosis Consortium or the Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium. He is a true
leader and generates ideas that frequently translate into innovative protocols or national/international collaborations. As
we all know, Dr. Packerʼs career is also strongly associated with the story of the ISPNO meeting and he has contributedto the development of an international paediatric neuro-oncology network.
Each and every member of the pediatric neuro-oncology community overwhelmingly shares the opinion that Dr Packerʼs
unparalleled contribution to his ﬁeld should be recognized at this time of his career and it is really a pleasure and aprivilege to oﬀer him this Award at the ISPNO Meeting 2020.

Award Recipient Proﬁle:Dr. Roger J. Packer is the Senior Vice President of the Center for Neuroscienceand Behavioral Medicine and Director of the Brain Tumor Institute and the Gilbert
Family Neurofibromatosis Institute at Children's National Hospital in Washington,
DC. His career is focused on the care of children with brain tumors including thedevelopment of prospective clinical trials for children with medulloblastoma, otherembryonal tumors, and with high and low-grade gliomas. He has and continues
to lead efforts in multiple brain tumor and neurofibromatosis consortiums andthe protocols Dr. Packer developed for medulloblastoma and low-grade glioma
remain international standards. He has published well over 400 original article and350 chapters and books. He was one of the founders of ISPNO, co-chairing theﬁrst meeting in the United States in Seattle in 1989, while also chairing ISPNO inPhiladelphia (1990) and Washington, D.C. (1996).
Roger J. Packer, MD

11ISPNO 2020 Award Recipients
Lifetime Contribution to Asian Neuro-Oncology
Community Award
Tai-Tong Wong, MDDr. Tai-Tong Wong represents one of the most senior and well-respected pediatric brain tumor specialist andneurosurgeon in Taiwan and Asia. He completed his undergraduate medical degree in 1973 from the NDMC and thenpursued neurosurgical training at Taipei VGH (1973-1978) followed by a pediatric neurosurgery fellowship at SickKids
Hospital, Canada (1980). He returned to Taiwan where he helped drive innovative multi-disciplinary approaches andpediatric brain tumor research and trained the ﬁrst generation of pediatric neuro-surgeons in Taiwan. Most recently(2015), he became the director of the pediatric brain tumor program of Taipei Cancer Center at TMUH/TMU where
he maintains a very busy consult service and directs a brain tumor research laboratory. Recently, he led and became
founding president of the Taiwan Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium (TPBTC).
In addition to his home country, Dr Wong has also played a critical role in the development of pediatric neurosurgery andneuro-oncology in Asia through international training initiatives and leadership in multiple international organizations. Inaddition to founding presidencies of TSNO (2003-2005), TSPN (2008-2010), he has served as president of ASPN (20152017) and ISPN (2009-2010). He has been an active organizer of multiple local and several international congresses
including the 4th Congress of ASNO (2005), the 34th ISPN annual meeting (2006), and 2nd Asian CNS GCT Conference(2016). The ISPNO 2020 Award for Lifetime contribution to Asian Neuro-Oncology Community recognizes the invaluable
career-long commitment of Dr Wong to promoting pediatric neuro-surgery and Neuro-oncology in Asia.

Award Recipient Proﬁle:Dr. Tai-Tong Wong is currently staﬀ and professor of pediatric neurosurgery anddirector of pediatric brain tumor program of Taipei Cancer Center at TMUH/TMU(since 2015). He graduated from NDMC (1973) and received neurosurgical andpediatric neurosurgical training in Taipei VGH (1973-1978) and HSC Toronto (clinicaland research fellow, 1980), respectively. He dedicates for team treatment andresearch of pediatric brain tumors since then. He has been the first president ofTSNO (2003-2005), TSPN (2008-2010), AASPN (2015-2017), TPBTC (2020-2023);
president of ISPN (2009-2010); and pediatric neurosurgery committee chairmanof WFNS (2010-2013). He had also hosted and organized international congresses
including the 4th Congress of ASNO (2005), the 34th ISPN annual meeting (2006),
and 2nd Asian CNS GCT Conference (2016).

Tai-Tong Wong, MD
Pediatric Brain Tumor Programand Pediatric Neurosurgery,
Department of Neurosurgery,
Taipei Medical University
Hospital

12Abbreviations: TMUH ‒ Taipei Medical University Hospital; TMU ‒ Taipei MedicalUniversity; NDMC ‒ National Defense Medical Center; Taipei VGH ‒ Taipei VeteransGeneral Hospital; HSC Toronto ‒ Hospital for Sick Children Toronto; TSNO ‒ Taiwan
Society for Neuro-Oncology; TSPN ‒ Taiwan Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery;
AASPN ‒ Asian Australasian Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery; WFNS ‒ World
Federation of Neurological Society; ASNO ‒ Asian Society for Neuro-Oncology; ISPN
‒ International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery; CNS GCT ‒ Central Nervous
System Germ cell Tumor.

ISPNO 2020 Award Recipients
Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Community Service AwardAngela Dickson, MBE
Neil Dickson, MBE
Neil and Angela Dickson have made a signiﬁcant contribution to neuro-oncology in the last 24 years. Inspired by theloss of their beautiful daughter Samantha, and recognising that there was not enough research into brain tumours, they
worked tirelessly to ensure that high quality research was pursued across the UK, and around the world.
Among other achievements, theyʼve funded work that led to the discovery of the medulloblastoma subtypes, andsteadfastly supported Head Smart, the award winning campaign that decreased diagnosis time for UK children witha brain tumour and in 2012 were integral in the merger which formed The Brain Tumour Charity as a global funder of
research in the ﬁeld.

Award Recipient Proﬁle:Neil and Angela founded the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust in 1996, sincerenamed The Brain Tumour Charity. It is one of the largest funders of brain tumour
research in the World. Being passionate about International collaboration, they havebeen supporters of ISPNO, attended seven conferences and have been silver andgold sponsors. We are delighted to accept this Award from ISPNO in recognition ofour contribution towards helping ﬁnd a cure for brain tumours.

Angela Dickson, MBE
Founder Trustee, The BrainTumour Charity
Neil Dickson, MBE
Founder and Vice chair ofTrustee, The Brain TumourCharity

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