Laura

Connelly-Smith

M.B.B.Ch., D.M.

Education, Training, Board Certifications 

• M.B.B.Ch., University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
• D.M., University of Nottingham, UK
• Residency in Internal Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, United Kingdom  
• Fellowships in Hematology, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Nottingham University Hospital, U.K., Lincoln County Hospital, U.K.

Clinical Expertise

• Leukemia
• Acute myeloid leukemia
• Chronic myeloid leukemia
• Myelodysplastic syndrome
• Myeloproliferative neoplasms
• Blood disorders
• Hematologic malignancies
• Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation
• Apheresis medicine

Affiliations 

• University of Washington
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center - Faculty & Lab
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center - Provider

Dr. Laura Connelly-Smith specializes in treating patients who have hematological malignancies, such as leukemia, with blood stem cell transplantation. She manages patients and donors undergoing marrow harvest and peripheral blood stem cell mobilization and collection by apheresis. Her expertise includes providing post-transplant care for patients with very complex transplant-related complications including graft-vs-host disease (GVHD). She is also directly involved in procuring bone marrow donations. At Fred Hutch, she serves as the medical director of apheresis and cellular therapy. In this role, she oversees the safe collection and processing of stem cells as well as other cellular therapy products. In addition to working with patients, she studies how to improve the donor experience during stem cell collection. She is also investigating how extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) — a form of light therapy — can be used to treat patients with GVHD, a potentially life-threatening condition that can develop after a stem cell transplant. She serves as the chair of the ECP subcommittee for the American Society of Apheresis.