K Scott Baker, MD, MS

This program is one of only eight centers in the US designated by the Lance Armstrong Foundation as a LIVESTRONG™ Survivorship Center of Excellence.  He is a nationally recognized expert in the field of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and in cancer survivorship and serves on the Cancer Control and Late Effects steering committee of the Children’s Oncology Group and is a member of the Late Effects and Health Policy Committees for the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research.  Dr. Baker's research interests are in the acute and long term-effects of HCT and are focused on the study of treatment related acute and long-term complications in survivors after transplant. This research forms the basis for his current grant support in which the incidence, risk factors, and characteristics of cardiac, pulmonary, renal, endocrine, reproductive late effects and quality of life outcomes in survivors are being studied. Additional studies are examining the “metabolic syndrome” and the early development of cardiovascular risk factors and diabetes in HCT survivors.  Dr. Baker is the principal investigator for FHCRC and the Seattle Children’s Hospital for participation in the multi-institutional Childhood Cancer Survivor Study which follows nearly 20,000 childhood cancer survivors.  This study has made a tremendous number of scientific discoveries regarding the long term outcomes in survivors after childhood cancer.  Dr. Baker also serves as the principal investigator for several HCT clinical trials, particularly for treatment of children with hemophagoytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), Langerhan’s Cell Histiocytosis (LCH) and other primary immune deficiencies.  For these patients, a novel type of transplantation that is designed to make HCT for patients with these disorders safer by utilizing a reduced intensity transplant preparative regimen is being investigated.