“With stem cells, we’re looking at changing people’s lives rather than just treating their diseases.

The most exciting part of the science to me is the idea that at some time in the not too distant future, we might actually be able to improve the course of people’s lives. Today, for people with chronic diseases, it’s a lifetime of juggling treatments and constantly taking medications. What if we could treat patients just once and alleviate their condition for life? Stem cell transplantation holds the promise of a one-time intervention, and possibly even a cure, rather than subjecting patients to continual, ongoing treatments and protocols.

Earlier in my career, I was involved with the discovery of the hematopoietic stem cell and the clinical translation of these cells in a study of metastatic terminal breast cancer patients who had failed all other therapies. Over a decade later, some of the women treated are still thriving. My hope is that we will be able to see this same kind of success with CNS and liver stem cells.”

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