Some people live long, healthy lives despite bad habits. Then there are people like Sandra Dillon. She lived as healthily as anyone—exercising, eating well, not smoking—yet at 28 she was diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a rare and deadly blood cancer.

Standard treatments failed, and she grew sicker. Then she learned about a clinical trial for an experimental stem cell therapy led by Dr. Catriona Jamieson at UC San Diego. Sandra feared more medical procedures, but her pain was severe, nothing else was working, and the trial offered hope.

“My experience had been rough,” she said. “But this was a chance to try something when nothing else was available.”

Dr. Jamieson, supported early by CIRM, had discovered how abnormal gene activity drives this cancer. With that insight, she identified a small molecule that inhibits the mutant pathway and stops disease progression.

That therapy is what Sandra received. After years of exhaustion and fear, her response was dramatic. “It was amazing. I had low expectations, but I started to feel incredible. The pain and side effects began to go down.”

Today, Sandra’s cancer remains in remission. She is back to her energetic, healthy self. She doesn’t see herself as a stem cell pioneer, but she is grateful her participation may help others. “It’s helped me, but knowing it could help others is truly meaningful.”

The therapy she received became the first CIRM‑supported treatment approved by the FDA in 2019.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Sandra at our CIRM 2020 Grantee Meeting.