Steven M. Rowe, M.D., MSPH, professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, has been named director of the Gregory Fleming James Cystic Fibrosis Research Center in the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine effective Aug. 1.
Rowe is an expert in the design and conduct of clinical trials targeting the basic CF defect. He says being tapped to lead the center is an exciting opportunity to build on the long legacy of cystic fibrosis research at UAB.
“It’s an incredibly exciting time to be in CF research, and researchers at UAB have been a big part of that progress,” Rowe said. “There have been two new treatments approved in the last three years that address the basic defect that causes CF, so we’re changing the face of the disease now for a large proportion of patients. And with the discovery of these new treatments, researchers have a clear path as to what we need to do next to help find a cure.”
CF is a chronic genetic disorder of the body’s mucus glands that can cause severe or even fatal respiratory infections in children and young adults. Approximately 30,000 people in the United States have CF, according the National Institutes of Health.
The UAB CF center was established in 1981, with the mission to provide a comprehensive, multidisciplinary understanding of CF pathogenesis, advance innovative therapies and, ultimately, identify a cure for the disease. Center membership is made up of over 25 faculty from seven UAB schools and more than 25 departments.