To bolster its treatment of blood cancers, City of Hope®, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States, today announced the launch of its Blood and Marrow Transplantation (BMT) and Cell Therapy Program at City of Hope Cancer Center Atlanta. A pioneer in BMT, City of Hope has one of the largest and most successful transplant programs of its kind in the United States with nearly 19,000 successful transplants since the program’s inception in 1976. By bringing this program to the Atlanta cancer center, City of Hope’s blood cancer expertise is now available in all City of Hope cancer centers nationwide, bridging existing gaps by expanding access to optimal cancer care for patients navigating leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and related hematologic diseases.
The Atlanta BMT and Cell Therapy Program is established under the guidance of Leslie Popplewell, M.D., blood and marrow transplant medical director, who now also serves as leader of the program. She joined the Atlanta cancer center in 2023 and previously served for over 20 years at City of Hope’s campus in Duarte, California, as hematologist, chief of the Division of Lymphoma, Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation and associate medical director of the Judy & Bernard Briskin Center for Clinical Research.
According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 187,740 people in the United States will be diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma in 2024. “In Georgia, blood cancers account for roughly 9% of estimated new cancer cases this year,” Popplewell said. “Establishing the transplant program is a critical milestone for City of Hope Atlanta and can help many patients dealing with blood cancers that have recurred or are difficult to treat receive the procedure, which can put them into remission.”
Blood stem cell and bone marrow transplants are lifesaving, intensive procedures. An autologous transplant uses a patient’s own healthy stem…
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