In Memoriam: Thea Friedman (2012)

On behalf of the transplantation community, it is with great sadness that we mark the recent passing of Thea M. Friedman, PhD, an Associate Scientist at the Hackensack University Medical Center, Director of Research Laboratory Services at the John Theurer Cancer Center, a member of the Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation editorial board, and long-term supporter of the American Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Thea contributed greatly to our understanding of the fine specificity of the graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) response in both experimental allogeneic rodent bone marrow transplantation (BMT) models and in the clinic. She was a staunch advocate for women in the medical science field, for whom she stood as a role model and a stellar example of how one can merge a successful science career with a fulfilling family life. Thea received her undergraduate BS in Biology from SUNY Albany. She undertook her graduate training at the University of Pennsylvania with Dr Howard Holzer, where she studied cell biology, investigating cytoskeletal protein turnover. After receiving her PhD in 1985, Thea started her postdoctoral training at the Fox Chase Cancer Center, before joining the laboratory of Dr Robert Korngold at Jefferson Medical College in 1991. Here she began her immersion in the field of immunology, specifically experimental BMT. During the rest of the decade, Thea developed a major interest in analyzing the repertoire of T cells contributing to GVHD. She diligently established and mastered spectratyping methodology to enable the systematic and precise identification of individual populations of donor T cells after allogeneic BMT. Beginning in 1998, her findings resulted in the publication of a series of influential papers in the Journal of Immunology and Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation reporting the identification of the major Vbeta TCR families of donor T cells undergoing early activation in recipients developing GVHD. Importantly, she further determined that these families differed depending on the individual transplant recipient under study. Thea's findings and expertise were recognized in many venues, including included presentations at national and international meetings and receipt of National Institutes of Health, research foundation and state department of health funding support, in addition to participation as a National Institutes of Health study section reviewer. Of her many accomplishments, Thea was most proud of her Amy Strelzer Manasevit Scholar prize. This highly prestigious award, which served as the foundation for Thea's subsequent R01 funding, recognized her use of TCR Vbeta spectratyping to develop a new in vitro predictive assay for GVHD in patients and to use that information to create novel approaches for GVHD prevention by selective removal of the offending TCR-expressing T cells. Thea was deeply committed to and tireless in her mentoring of the next generation of scientists through supervision of a wide range of trainees, from summer interns to masters and PhD students, as well as postdoctoral fellows. Thea's passion for science was not deterred by her diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Despite her considerable challenges, she continued to be highly engaged in robust scientific discussions with her devoted husband, Dr. Robert Korngold, and never ceased in her efforts to see her research applied in the clinic, fulfilling the goal of her Amy Strezler Manasevit award. Her conviction in searching for new translational approaches was perhaps most evident in her participation in the testing of new immunomodulatory therapies to ameliorate her own disease. Although Thea's career was tragically curtailed, she will be long remembered for her many scientific contributions, caring and warmth for her trainees and colleagues, effervescent personality, and infectious laughter.