Right after Gerald Qwartey said it, the lobby of the Helena Theuer Pavilion at Hackensack University Medical Center literally erupted in the kind of applause you hear after a great performance.
“I just can’t express how grateful I am to still be here today,” 19-year-old Gerald said, just days after completing his freshman year at Penn State University, almost a year to the date of becoming the first patient in New Jersey discharged after a grueling second hospitalization to undergo the gene therapy treatment at Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital on the Hackensack University Medical Center campus that cured him of sickle cell disease.
Just a few minutes earlier, Jhayda Gayle, who is soon to be a senior in high school, had recounted how she also wanted to become a nurse. Like Gerald, she said she had been inspired by the many doctors and nurses and other team members who took care of her during the years she lived through the pain of living with sickle cell and how also like Gerald, she had undergone curative treatment at Joseph M. Sanzari. Jhayda, 17, was cured as a result of a bone marrow transplant, treatment that, like new cutting edge gene therapy, has been pioneered for children and adults at Hackensack University Medical Center.
Gerald and Jhayda spoke at Shine a Light on Sickle Cell Disease, an emotional celebration that gathered current and former Joseph M. Sanzari sickle call warriors – including those cured of the disease. A special invited guest was New Jersey State Senator Gordon Johnson, who represents Hackensack University Medical Center in the NJ Legislature. Over the years, he has been a steadfast champion in the state capitol of Trenton for the sickle cell community, helping lead efforts to secure critical funding and resources for patients. His advocacy has been instrumental in expanding access to care.
The highlight of the event was hearing from patients, who offered a profound look at the human side of a medical revolution in treatment that has occurred at Hackensack Meridian Health during more than 20 years.
Since 2002, 126 patients have been cured from sickle cell disease by undergoing stem cell transplant or gene therapy. Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital at Hackensack University Medical Center has recently been designated as a National Alliance of Sickle Cell Center (NASCC) It is estimated that there are 5,000 patients living with sickle cell disease in New Jersey, 2,500 of them pediatric patients with approximately 60 new cases being diagnosed each year.
“The conversation begins in infancy,” said Alfred Gillio, M.D., who oversees the sickle cell treatment program at Joseph M. Sanzari as director of Hematology-Oncology and Cellular Therapies. “Today we know that patients will be cured.”
“Here at Hackensack University Medical Center, we are not just managing SCD; we are delivering cures. For over two decades, our institution has been at the forefront of battling this disease, operating the largest and oldest program in New Jersey,” said Lisa Tank, M.D., president and chief hospital executive, Hackensack University Medical Center. “Our commitment to innovation is unwavering. In 2024, we became the first and only designated Qualified Treatment Center in New Jersey to offer Lyfgenia™, a revolutionary one-time gene therapy that can cure SCD in patients 12 and older. This, coupled with our long history of success in bone marrow transplantation, places us at the vanguard of curative therapies for this disease.”
“Tonight, we celebrate the work of so many – our brilliant doctors, nurses, and researchers. But most of all, we celebrate our heroic patients and their families,” Mark Sparta, chief operating officer, Hackensack Meridian Health, said during the event. “You are the reason we do what we do. Your courage inspires us, and your trust honors us.”
Prior to Joseph M. Sanzari treating the first gene therapy patient cured of sickle cell, it and John Theurer Cancer Center, also located on the Hackensack University Medical Center campus, became the first designated Qualified Treatment Centers for the gene therapy treatment in New Jersey, following FDA approval of the use of Lyfgenia.
Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health has the oldest and largest curative treatment program in the state. It is a joint program in partnership with the Adult Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Program at John Theurer. The joint program – which serves adults and children as does the Lyfgenia gene therapy program – is accredited by Foundation for the Accreditation for Cellular Therapy (FACT).