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City of Hope names director for gene therapy center
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John A. Zaia, MD, has been named director of the Center for Gene Therapy, part of City of Hope’s Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute.
Zaia, the Aaron D. and Edith Miller chair in gene therapy and past chair of the department of virology, is internationally recognized for his research into potential gene therapy treatments.
“City of Hope has made an important commitment to exploring the potential of gene therapy, and I’m proud to lead the effort as a leader of the gene therapy center,” Zaia said in a press release. “The researchers and clinicians at City of Hope have both the potential and the determination to change the course of HIV, cancer and other life-threatening diseases, and I’m looking forward to working with them to develop new gene therapy options.”
Zaia is principal investigator of the new Alpha Clinic for Cell Therapy and Innovation (ACT-I) at City of Hope. The clinic is dedicated to identifying new stem cell cures for currently incurable diseases.
Before joining City of Hope in 1980, he served as instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and clinical associate at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
“When it comes to gene therapy, John has been both a visionary and a teacher,” Stephen J. Forman, MD, FACP, director of the new hematologic institute and chair in hematology and hematopoietic cell transplantation at City of Hope, said in a press release. “His leadership will be vital in helping doctors and researchers maximize the potential of gene therapy as a source of treatments. His leadership will be vital in helping us save lives.”