Dr. Paller is the Walter J. Hamlin Professor and Chair of Dermatology, Professor of Pediatrics, and Principal Investigator of the NIH-funded Skin Biology and Diseases Resource-based Center (SBDRC) at Northwestern. An author of 550 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Paller has also edited several major textbooks in dermatology, among them Hurwitz’s Clinical Pediatric Dermatology (now 6th edition) and Fitzpatrick’s Dermatology in General Medicine. She is an NIH-funded investigator in both her laboratory-based and clinical research. She has directed the Pediatric Dermatology Clinical Trials Unit at Northwestern/ Lurie Children’s for the past 30 years and has been the lead investigator on several landmark trials in pediatric skin disease, particularly related to atopic dermatitis (AD), psoriasis, and genodermatoses. Her laboratory focuses on cell-cell communication in inflammatory skin diseases and impaired wound healing, as well as on topically delivered gene regulation through nanotherapy. She has most recently defined skin and blood biomarkers for children with AD and ichthyoses towards pathogenesis-directed therapy and has developed new patient-related outcomes scales for itch and stigma in children. Dr. Paller was the inaugural President of the International Eczema Council and inaugural co-President of the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance. She has been President of the Society for Investigative Dermatology, Society for Pediatric Dermatology, and the Women’s Dermatologic Society. She is currently President of the International Society for Pediatric Dermatology. She has served on Council and the Board of Scientific Councilors for NIH/NIAMS, and on numerous boards for dermatology patient advocacy organizations. She has received several honors for her scholarship, leadership and mentorship, among them election to the American Association of Physicians and the American Dermatological Association, and awarding of the Stephen Rothman Award from the Society for Investigative Dermatology, Mentor of the Year, Rose Hirschler, and the Wilma Bergfeld, MD Visionary & Leadership awards from the Women’s Dermatological Society, the Clarence S. Livingood, MD Memorial Award from the AAD, the Founder’s Award from the Chicago Dermatological Society, the Tanioku Kihei Memorial Award from the Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology, the International Award from the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, and the inaugural Paula Stern Outstanding Women in Science and Medicine Award from Northwestern. Dr. Paller has mentored hundreds of students, residents, fellows and junior faculty; her greatest pleasure is to watch young people gain knowledge, get excited about concepts and discoveries, and advance their own careers.
