Our son Blake is 14 years old and eight years post bone marrow transplant. While we celebrate milestones, it’s important to remember that the transplant did not cure his Fanconi anemia. It gave him something incredibly valuable, more time, but FA is still part of his life.
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Kevin Haworth
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow | PhD
Dr. Haworth is a post-doctoral fellow in the Kiem Lab in Seattle. The Kiem Lab studies cell and gene therapy with a particular interested in the biology of blood and marrow stem cells and the development and use of novel genome editing technologies. The overall goal is to develop better stem cell transplant and cell and gene therapy treatments for patients with genetic and infectious diseases and cancer.
Recent studies from the Kiem lab have examined the role of endothelial cells in iPSC-derived HSC specification and expansion. We have also used endothelial cell support to expand adult marrow HSCs and used novel small molecules for expansion. We have demonstrated successful ex vivo expansion of human cord blood cells when cultured in the presence of specific small molecules. We also have 4 active clinical gene therapy studies. One study aims at treating patients with glioblastoma and we have now treated 7 patients and have shown in our most recent manuscript improved survival in high-risk patients with glioblastoma. One clinical study involves the correction of the genetic defect in blood and marrow stem cells from patients with Fanconi anemia and we have now treated 2 patients. Two clinical studies involve gene therapy approaches for patients with HIV and lymphoma undergoing either primary chemotherapy or requiring an autologous HSC transplantation. The Kiem lab is also part of multiple collaborations to improve the efficiency by which HSCs can be cultured and transduced, while closely monitoring the gene modified clones through cutting-edge high-throughput retroviral integration site analysis.
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When I was 20 weeks pregnant, my doctor recommended an amniocentesis so we could find out what was causing concerns during my pregnancy. They took amniotic fluid for testing, and that's when my husband and I learned our daughter had a rare genetic disorder called Fanconi anemia (FA). We found out that we were both carriers, something we had never known.
The Family Retreat offers families a break from appointments, treatment decisions and everyday responsibilities. Children can try new activities and grow in confidence while caregivers learn, share practical support and connect with one another. The relationships formed at camp often continue long after everyone goes home.