SEATTLE — Oct. 4, 2022 — Below are summaries of recent Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center research findings and other news.
Join us for our next virtual science event focused on precision oncology. The discussion will be 10 a.m. - 11 p.m. PT on Wednesday, Oct. 12 and will feature Drs. Thomas Lynch Jr., Christina Baik, Sujata Jana, Jeff Leek and Colin Pritchard. Please RSVP HERE by Monday, Oct. 10.
And if you’re looking for sources for October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month, please see our breast cancer page for a list of projects, experts and the latest breast cancer news.
Fred Hutch organizational news
Fred Hutch begins rollout of new brand
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance formally merged in April 2022 to officially become Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. In October the organization’s new brand was officially launched, with updates to websites, social media channels and banners as well as updated signs around the South Lake Union campus. Patients and providers will see temporary signage and other updates at Fred Hutch clinical care sites around the Seattle region in the coming months.
Media contact: Kat Wynn, kwynn@fredhutch.org
Precision oncology
Transformative $78M gift to establish new precision oncology institute
Stuart and Molly Sloan have pledged $78 million to support Fred Hutch. The gift will further advance Fred Hutch’s work in precision oncology, which integrates fundamental biology, technology, immunology, data science and clinical experience into strategies to prevent, detect and treat cancer.
Media contact: Kat Wynn, kwynn@fredhutch.org
Infectious disease
Researchers refine experimental gene therapy for herpes
Two years after scientists showed that an experimental gene therapy for herpes – which affects billions of people around the world – can knock out most latent infection in mice, new tests reveal that it also suppresses the amount of transmissible virus shed by the treated animals. In a paper posted on bioRxiv, Fred Hutch virologists Drs. Keith Jerome and Martine Aubert report the treatment dramatically reduced or even eliminated viral shedding in treated mice compared to controls.
Media contact: Molly McElroy, mwmcelro@fredhutch.org
Health equity
Spokane Regional Health District: Gaps in cancer care experienced in Spokane
For their podcast “Cancer Health Equity Now,” members of Fred Hutch’s Office of Community Outreach and Engagement in Spokane spoke with Spokane Regional Health District Health Officer Dr. Frank Velazquez. They discussed gaps in access to cancer care in Spokane, collaboration efforts by local organizations, and the feasibility of a sustainable Mobile Mammogram Program locally.
Media contact: Kat Wynn, kwynn@fredhutch.org
On Twitter
Follow Dr. Aakansha Singhvi (@SinghviLabGlia) as the Singhvi lab works towards understanding how glia-neurons interact with the nervous system and the key role worms play.
Virus evolution expert Dr. Jesse Bloom (@jbloom_lab) recently shared a study on the evolution of antibody immunity following Omicron BA. He said, “Although response to Omicron dominated by preexisting B-cells, antibodies from these cells better at 6 months than 1 month.”
Science spotlight
Science Spotlight is a monthly installment of articles written by postdoctoral fellows at Fred Hutch that summarize new research papers from Hutch scientists. If you’re interested in learning more or covering these topics, contact: media@fredhutch.org
- Interactions between oncologists and patients – The lung cancer experience
- Innovative Holland Lab mouse model helps tease apart YAP1’s role in brain cancer
- License to Kill: Latency HIV-CRISPR pinpoints how to blow latent HIV’s cover
- A little nervous system with big learning potential
- A liquid asset: Lung cancer tumor profiling from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid
# # #
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center unites comprehensive care and advanced research to provide the latest cancer treatment options and accelerate discoveries that prevent, treat and defeat cancer and infectious diseases worldwide.
Based in Seattle, Fred Hutch is an independent, nonprofit organization and the only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in Washington. We have earned a global reputation for our track record of discoveries in cancer, infectious disease and basic research, including important advances in bone marrow transplantation, HIV/AIDS prevention, immunotherapy and COVID-19 vaccines. Fred Hutch operates eight clinical care sites that provide medical oncology, infusion, radiation, proton therapy and related services and has network affiliations with hospitals in four states. Fred Hutch also serves as UW Medicine’s cancer program.
Please note that our organization was renamed Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in April 2022, following the merger of long-time partners, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.