Stephen Douglas Smith, MD
Located at
I settled on becoming a doctor while studying biology as an undergraduate. I was interested in applying science to directly help people, and I wanted to be part of the revolution in medicine related to advances in molecular biology. Oncology interests me because, more than any other field of medicine, it combines the essential skills of doctoring, the use of rapidly improving treatments and the opportunity to forge deep bonds with patients.
Rapid advancements have turned hematologic cancers into very treatable conditions, but these diseases still require individualized care. My approach is to design a treatment plan tailored to your specific situation, which includes offering you the newest, most promising therapies. I also believe it’s essential to provide you with all the information you need to make the best treatment decisions for yourself. Sharing thorough, up-to-date information to support your decision-making is at the core of our relationship.
Provider background
Specialty: Medical Oncology
Hematologic malignancies
I am a medical oncologist who cares for patients with lymphoma and other blood disorders and a member of the American Society of Hematology and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. My research focuses on developing and testing new drugs for hematologic malignancies. I’m especially interested in how the immune system works and how we can modify it when it goes awry — in particular, how we can use immunotherapies to treat blood-related cancers like lymphomas. I’m hopeful that, through research, we will find better ways to eradicate these diseases. And, for those diseases that we can’t cure, we should be able to control them with well-tolerated medicines over a person’s normal lifespan.
Diseases treated
Stories
Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) treats more MCL patients than almost any other center in the Pacific Northwest region and offers one of the nation’s most robust portfolios of standard treatments and clinical trials, in partnership with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC)
Research
Clinical trials
We make promising new treatments available to you through studies called clinical trials led by Fred Hutch doctors. Many of these trials at Fred Hutch have led to FDA-approved treatments and have improved standards of care globally. Together, you and your doctor can decide if a study is right for you.
Publications
Many of our Fred Hutch doctors conduct ongoing research to improve standards of patient care. Their work is evaluated by other doctors 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 provider has written.
Press
Our providers are often asked to give their medical expertise for press and news publications. Read articles by or about this Fred Hutch provider.
Your care team
Insurance
Fred Hutch accepts most national private health insurance plans as well as Medicare. We also accept Medicaid for people from Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. We are working to ensure that everyone, no matter what their financial situation, has access to the care they need.
