The Program in Infectious Diseases is an integral part of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The Center's mission as an institution is to to eliminate cancer and related diseases as causes of human suffering and death. This mission grew out of the dream of the Center's founder, Dr. William Hutchinson, who strove to further basic and applied research (see FHCRC History). The Program in Infectious Diseases shares in his vision.
The Program in Infectious Diseases is a program within the Hutchinson Center's Clinical Research Division. This Division supports a number of programs that specialize in major independent area of research. The Division of Clinical Research was particularly honored in 1990 when Dr. E. Donnall Thomas, a pioneer in bone marrow transplantation and director of the Division from 1975 to 1989, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his work at the Center. Currently, Dr. Frederick Appelbaum serves as the director of the Division.
"To effectively detect, prevent, and treat the infectious disease complications of the immunocompromised host"
Infectious diseases remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the immunocompromised host, and ID researchers strive to understand the nature of these diseases.
The Program in ID has an important
affiliation with the UW Department of Laboratory Medicine's Virology Division.
The ID's Affiliations section of this web site
details the synergy between the Program in ID and the UW Virology Division.