Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, Washington

The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is located in Seattle, Washington. It has been an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center since 1973. In addition to its groundbreaking cancer research, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center offers state-of-the-art compassionate care to patients diagnosed with all types of cancers, including malignant pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma and lung cancer.

Facts About the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is part of a three-facility scientific consortium working towards improving cancer diagnosis and treatment and finding a cure for cancers of all kinds.[1]
• Three researchers from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center have been the recipients of Nobel Prizes.
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center has over 5,700 employees working to improve cancer outcomes.
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center was the first National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center in the Pacific Northwest.[2]
• Fred Hutchinson 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 Hutchinson was one of the first cancer centers in the nation to offer all three FDA-approved CAR T-cell therapies.[2]
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center researchers were among the first to show the potential of the immune system to wipe out cancers.[2] 

History

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center’s history is rooted in the cancer that afflicted Seattle’s baseball great, Fred Hutchinson. Hutchinson found a lump in his neck in 1963 and died the following year at age 45.

His brother Bill, a physician, had previously established the Pacific Northwest Research Foundation to study heart surgery, cancer, and endocrine disease. After Fred’s death, he dedicated the center exclusively to the study of cancer. In 1975, he opened the Fred Washington Senator Warren Magnuson and the Seattle community.[4] 

The center began making history almost immediately, perfecting the transplantation of human bone marrow after chemotherapy and radiation to cure leukemia and other blood cancers. In 1990, the physician behind this research won the Nobel Prize for his work. 

In 1998, Fred Hutchinson, Seattle Children’s, and UW Medicine joined forces to form the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, then restructured in 2022 to form the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

Mesothelioma and Lung Cancer Care at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

Patients diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma, lung cancer, and peritoneal mesothelioma will find everything they need at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

Patients can receive advanced treatments and access to novel protocols. They may be eligible to participate in one of the many clinical trials being conducted through the Fred Hutchinson/UW Medicine Cancer Consortium. 

Care is provided by expert surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, pulmonologists, and pathologists, all supported by a robust support team, including social workers, palliative care professionals, and registered dietitians.

Fred Hutchinson’s team uses a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis and treatment. Available surgeries for pleural mesothelioma include extrapleural pneumonectomy and pleurectomy/decortication.

Prescribed radiation therapy treatment can be dosed both externally and internally, through brachytherapy.

The center also effectively uses both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Patients with peritoneal mesothelioma will find an experienced team capable of performing cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).[3]

Research

Research conducted at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is conducted as part of a consortium with the University of Washington and the Seattle Children’s Cancer Center.

While Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center was designated a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute in 1973, the scientific collaboration and integration between the three have elevated their abilities and led to the consortium itself, representing more than 650 researchers, being designated a Comprehensive Cancer Center.[1] 

The Fred Hutchinson/UW Cancer Consortium is recognized for its expertise in basic sciences, clinical/translational research, and public health sciences. Its researchers investigate multiple types of cancer, working to understand their molecular roots and create tools and strategies for detection and treatment.

Its organization consists of eight separate research programs:

• Biostatistics and Computational Biology
• Breast and Ovary Cancers
• Cancer Basic Biology
• Cancer Epidemiology, Prevention, and Control
• Cancer Immunology
• Hematologic Malignancies
• Pathogen Associated Malignancies
• Prostate Cancer

Moving beyond those underpinnings, the center has targeted five scientific areas for inter-programmatic focus: the molecular basis of cancer; immunology and transplantation; pathogen-associated malignancies; tumor-specific translational research; and cancer etiology, prevention, and outcomes.

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center and its consortium have made notable advances in their work in immunotherapy.[1]

Notable Staff and Mesothelioma Specialists

The mesothelioma and lung cancer care teams at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center include oncologists who specialize in thoracic cancers, patient care coordinators, surgical specialists, pulmonologists, and support staff. This multidisciplinary team collaborates to ensure that treatment plans reflect patients’ conditions and their personal goals.  

The team includes oncologists Dr. Christina S. Baik, Dr. Keith Eaton, and Dr. Diane Tseng. Patients who are eligible for surgery benefit from the skills of surgeons, including Dr. Farhood Farjah, Dr. Harveshp Mogal, and Dr. Michael Mulligan.[3]

Working together with staff at UW Medicine, Fred Hutchinson’s physicians and researchers provide compassionate treatment, high-quality care, and improved outcomes for patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma, malignant peritoneal mesothelioma, and lung cancer.