Donna Johnston

Investigator, CHEO Research Institute

Donna Johnston is a Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist at CHEO and a full Professor at the University of Ottawa. She is a graduate of Queen’s University and completed her residency at the University of Ottawa and fellowship at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. Her main areas of oncology expertise are in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and neuro-oncology. Her research interests are in supportive care for cancer patients, quality of life, AML and neuro-oncology. She also has an interest in education and has several roles in this realm and research in this. She is the Children’s Oncology Group Principal Investigator at CHEO and a member of the COG Myeloid Committee and Cancer Control Committee. She is the author of over 190 peer reviewed publications and has presented her work at many national and international meetings.

Email Researcher

Research Areas

Cancer Genetics Patient Safety Pharmacy

Research Projects

  1. The expense of sending cerebrospinal fluid for analysis on all lumbar punctures in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients

    01/02/2022

    Given the marginal cost of routine CSF screening and the lack of specific and sensitive symptoms for CNS relapse, we conclude that the routine practice of sending all CSF samples for analysis of CNS relapse in ALL patients is relatively inexpensive and beneficial.

  2. Management of chronic myeloid leukemia in children and adolescents: Recommendations from the Children’s Oncology Group CML Working Group

    01/09/2021

    This review outlines the diagnosis and management of the underlying disease as well as challenges that can occur when dealing with CML in this patient population.

  3. Phase I dose-finding study for melatonin in pediatric oncology patients with relapsed solid tumors

    01/06/2019

    This study provides the background for further study of high-dose melatonin in pediatric oncology patients.

  4. Analyses of Adverse Drug Reactions-Nationwide Active Surveillance Network: Canadian Pharmacogenomics Network for Drug Safety Database

    04/03/2019

    Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are a major problem in modern medicine, representing up to the fourth‐highest cause of mortality.