New Brunswick, NJ (September 9, 2025) — RWJBarnabas Health and Rutgers Cancer Institute, the state’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, in collaboration with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program, which has provided life-saving care to patients since 1995.
The program’s first bone marrow transplant patient, Munson McLeod, was given six months to live in 1994 after being diagnosed with relapsed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Thanks to an autologous stem cell transplant, he is alive today, a husband, father, and business owner. “The easiest thing in the world would have been to give up,” he recalls. “But I intended to go through the worst to get better. I’m here today because of the expertise and compassion of my doctors and nurses.”
The program located at the Jack & Sheryl Morris Cancer Center brings together oncologists, nurses, transplant coordinators, and researchers in a highly collaborative model of care. It is the only such center at an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the State and is accredited by the Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) and the National Marrow Donor Program. It is also a certified Gene Therapy Treatment Center for adults and children with sickle cell anemia and beta-thalassemia. Transplants are done at the Jack & Sheryl Morris Cancer Center in New Brunswick, however care is coordinated with oncologists across RWJBarnabas Health, the region and beyond.
Today, the program provides patients access to advanced treatment options for blood cancers including autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplantation, CAR T-cell therapy, and gene therapy for sickle cell anemia and beta-thalassemia. “Since we treated our first patient thirty years ago, we continue to see advancements in the treatment of hematologic malignancies,” said Mathew Matasar, MD, Chief of Blood Disorders at Rutgers Cancer Institute and RWJBarnabas Health. “Our optimism is fueled by both science and the strength of our patients. Their courage inspires us daily.”
Additionally, Rutgers Cancer Institute and The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital now offer stem cell transplantation to children, adolescents, and young adults with cancers and blood disorders through the Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapies Program.
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About RWJBarnabas Health
RWJBarnabas Health is New Jersey’s largest and most comprehensive academic health system, caring for more than five million people annually. Nationally renowned for quality and safety, the system includes, 14 hospitals and 9,000 affiliated physicians integrated to provide care at more than 700 patient care locations.
RWJBarnabas Health partners with its communities to build and sustain a healthier New Jersey. It provides patient-centered care in a compassionate manner and is the state’s largest safety-net provider and leader in addressing the social determinants of health. RWJBarnabas Health provides food to the hungry, housing for the homeless and economic opportunities to those most vulnerable.
RWJBarnabas Health’s commitment to enhancing access to care includes a transformative partnership with Rutgers University, including the Rutgers Cancer Institute — the state's only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
RWJBarnabas Health is among New Jersey’s largest private employers, with more than 44,000 employees, contributing more than $5.5 billion to the state economy every year. For more information, visit www.RWJBH.org
About Rutgers Cancer Institute
As New Jersey’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, Rutgers Cancer Institute, together with RWJBarnabas Health, provides patients access to the most advanced treatment options including clinical trials close to home at our facilities throughout the state. Our groundbreaking cancer research is the engine that drives access to the most advanced cancer treatments, where our discoveries become your care. This has been enhanced with the opening of the state’s first and only freestanding cancer hospital, the Jack and Sheryl Morris Cancer Center. Visit: www.cinj.org.
Media Contact:
Krista Didzbalis
Corporate Communications Specialist, Strategic Communications, RWJBarnabas Health
732.507.8307
krista.didzbalis2@rwjbh.org