Geoffrey Hill, MD, FRACP, FRCPA

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Hill
Geoffrey Hill, MD, FRACP, FRCPA

Geoffrey Hill, MD, FRACP, FRCPA

  • Director of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation, Fred Hutch
  • Senior Vice President and Director, Translational Science and Therapeutics Division, Fred Hutch
  • Professor, Translational Science and Therapeutics, Fred Hutch
  • Leonard and Norma Klorfine Endowed Chair for Clinical Research, Fred Hutch
  • Professor, Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of Washington School of Medicine

Hematology-Oncology

 Print

“Seeing patients cured of leukemia and returning to normal life is highly rewarding.”

— Dr. Hill

Why do you conduct research?

Early in my career, I was caring for a man, about the same age as me, who was an up-and-coming musician. His leukemia had relapsed and there were no treatment options left that could cure him. He didn’t want to spend the time he had left in a hospital, so I would meet him at a local park or his home to provide palliative care, easing his symptoms and making him comfortable. Although I couldn’t save his life, he made a deep impression on mine: I realized that doing research was the best way to save the lives of people like him. Seeing patients with poor outcomes after transplants drives me to keep searching for answers.

What do you want patients to know about working with you?

In my clinical practice, I see a lot of patients with complications following bone marrow transplants — a curative therapy for otherwise fatal blood cancers — that can be difficult to address. I go into the lab to understand what’s going on biologically so that I can develop new treatments and try to prevent some of these complications. What I do in the lab is constantly informed by my interactions with patients — I’m always striving to improve their outcomes. When working with me, you can expect to have candid discussions about your illness and your treatment options. I want you to be fully informed, understanding the pros and cons of each choice, so that we can make decisions together.

Provider Background

Area of Clinical Practice
Adult blood and marrow transplantation

As a hematologist and the director of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation at Fred Hutch, I treat patients with blood cancers like leukemia. I also work closely with experts at Fred Hutch to identify ways to combine transplantation with emerging immunotherapies (therapies that harness the immune system) to fight cancer.

My background includes leading the bone marrow transplantation and cancer programs at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia, and caring for patients at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. As a senior principal research fellow of Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council, I have co-authored more than 150 journal articles on stem cells, transplantation and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), a potentially life-threatening complication of transplantation.

In the lab, I focus on understanding the immunological mechanisms of GVHD and developing novel therapeutic strategies for prevention and treatment. My research has led to the development of multiple new drugs for GVHD, many of which are currently used in patient care or are undergoing clinical trials.

Languages

English

Education, Experience and Certifications

Medical Degree
University of Auckland Medical School

Residency
Rotorua Hospital; Waikato Hospital

Fellowship
Caterbury Health; Dana Farber Cancer Institute

Other
Teaching Appointment, Queensland Institute of Medical Research

Stories

All news
Leonard and Norma Klorfine Endowed Chair for Clinical Research awarded to Dr. Geoffrey Hill
Leonard and Norma Klorfine Endowed Chair for Clinical Research awarded to Dr. Geoffrey Hill Funding will help facilitate inter-institutional collaboration and foundational data capture for immunological research January 8, 2025
Fred Hutch expands its research capacity in South Lake Union
Fred Hutch expands its research capacity in South Lake Union Three new buildings will boost recruitment and strengthen science October 8, 2024
Secret to tamping down GVHD may lie in microbial genetics
Secret to tamping down GVHD may lie in microbial genetics Preclinical bone marrow transplant study shows donor immune cells that target recipient microbiome can influence GVHD severity June 13, 2024

Clinical Trials

We make promising new treatments available to you through studies called clinical trials led by Fred Hutch physicians. Many of these trials at Fred Hutch have led to FDA-approved treatments and have improved standards of care globally. Together, you and your physician can decide if a study is right for you.

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Publications

Many of our Fred Hutch physicians conduct ongoing research to improve standards of patient care. Their work is evaluated by other physicians and selected for publication to the United States National Library of Medicine, the largest medical library in the world. See scientific papers this Fred Hutch physician has written.

View Dr. Hill's Publications

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