Graft-versus-Host Disease: Understanding It & Navigating Life with It image

Graft-versus-Host Disease: Understanding It & Navigating Life with It

Apr 29, 2025
02:00PM - 03:00PM EDT
Online Event
Overview

If you have myelodysplastic syndromes and have developed graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) after a bone marrow transplant, you may have many questions about why it happens and how to manage it.

Join our webinar with Dr. Doris Ponce, a Bone Marrow Transplant Specialist and Director of the Graft-versus-Host Disease Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as she explains what causes GVHD, how it affects your body, and what strategies can help you live better with it. We’ll discuss practical tips for symptom management, lifestyle adjustments, and which doctors or specialists you may need to see for better care. Whether you’re newly diagnosed with graft-versus-host disease or have been living with it for some time, this session will help you navigate your journey with more confidence.

 

Agenda
2:00 PM
Introduction
Marilú Nájera Flores

Marilú introduces the agenda for the event and featured speaker Dr. Doris Ponce

2:05 PM
Presentation
Doris Ponce, MD

Dr. Ponce talks about graft vs host disease

2:35 PM
Questions and Answers
Audience

Type your questions in the chat and we will answer them! 

Speakers & Moderators
Healthtree contact Marilú Nájera Flores

Marilú Nájera Flores

Marilu Najera is an International Medical Graduate and an Event Operations Manager at the HealthTree Foundation. Her journey through several patient-centered roles has deepened her passion for advocacy, education, and connection. Now, as part of the education team, she is leading efforts to grow HealthTree’s newest community: ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia). She organizes patient-friendly webinars with expert speakers and works to ensure that patients and families feel informed, empowered, and supported. Marilu brings empathy, joy, and warmth to every project. Outside of work, she loves to travel, connect with others, and spend time with her loved ones—especially her nephews (being an aunt is her absolute favorite role in life!).
Healthtree contact Doris Ponce, MD

Doris Ponce, MD

Dr. Doris Ponce is a board-certified hematologist and oncologist with special expertise in bone marrow transplantation and the treatment of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). She serves as the Director of the GVHD Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where she works alongside a multidisciplinary team of hematologists and transplant specialists to provide comprehensive care for patients with blood cancers. Dr. Ponce is deeply committed to advancing the understanding and management of GVHD, developing innovative therapies to improve patient outcomes. She co-chairs the Center for Hematologic Malignancies Translational Research Council and has led numerous clinical trials related to chronic GVHD and oral GVHD treatments. Her research has garnered recognition, including the Incyte Ingenuity Award for GVHD in both 2021 and 2024. Dr. Ponce’s work strives to improve the lives of patients undergoing stem cell transplantation and to advance the science of blood cancer treatments.