171 Ashley Ave.
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-1414
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April 2006
Feature Story
Children's Hospital and Charles P. Darby Children's Research Institute Transform Hope into Reality
A Parent's Perspective
When Dave Kreber considers how attainable his hope is for his three children, he likes to make it real by putting it within
the scope of his own lifetime.
"My daughter Monica is a cancer survivor who is now 16 but was diagnosed with leukemia at age 7," he explains. "If that had
been me as a child -if this had been 40 years ago - the doctors would've had to tell my parents that I had six weeks to live.
It's thrilling for me to know that, because of all the research during those years, now 60 to 70 percent of juvenile leukemia
cases are treatable, and that's exciting.
"To realize that we've gotten to where we are in that time frame is amazing, and to think that, right here in our own town,
researchers are finding cures to help other children - is just a fantastic feeling," he says.
His excitement over new research buoys Kreber's hopes for his two sons, Zach, 11, and Drew, 18, who both have juvenile diabetes.
"It's the same scenario with diabetes: During my childhood, there was little hope on the horizon for a cure for someone
diagnosed with this condition. But now there is an excellent chance that, within 10 years, there will be a cure," explains Kreber.
He's hopeful that researchers at the DCRI and Dr. Lyndon Key will come up with a cure.
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| Kreber Family: Sally, Drew, Monica, and Dave, with Zach |
"Hopefully my sons won't be faced with a lifetime of injections and needles - hopefully that will be just 20 percent of their
lives, instead of 100 percent," he notes, mentioning recent advances on a new inhaler for diabetics.
"We're sitting on that very edge of technology that might take us to the next level to turning around diabetes," he contemplates.
"That's something my parents couldn't have told me if I'd been diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, because when I was a preteen
there was no hope in the near future of having diabetes cured. But now there is. Dr. Key feels a cure is near, and that's very exciting to hear."
Kreber chuckles that he is obviously a big fan of Dr. Key, and also a big fan of pediatric oncologist Dr. Julio Barredo. For the
last several years, Kreber has organized an annual fundraiser to raise money for leukemia research at the Children's Research
Institute, raising nearly $300,000 in nine years.
"To be right here in Charleston and have the Children's Research Institute and the Children's Hospital, we feel we are a part of
making it happen, we feel we're doing a part to help them find a cure," he says. "That's why the Children's Research Institute is
so important. They've made huge strides in saving children, and that is a very special thing to be a part of."
"We've been lucky, but we've met people who aren't lucky," says Kreber. "We can't rest until they're all lucky."
He pauses, remembering the daughter of a coworker who did not survive cancer. "She went to the same clinics, had the same doctors,
the same treatment protocols as our daughter," he says. "Until we get them all cured, it doesn't matter. We haven't reached our goal
until they're all cured. In my lifetime, I feel that's something I will see."
A President's Perspective
As one of the leading children's hospitals in the country and a nationally recognized center of clinical excellence, the Children's
Hospital at MUSC is a tribute to the entire institution, says Dr. Raymond Greenburg, president of MUSC.
"The Children's Hospital is a resource for the entire state," says Dr. Greenberg. "There are others in the state, but we have the
broadest range of specialists in child health care in South Carolina. And when you look at our referral base, we truly serve all the
children in the state."
The CRI is a necessary companion to the Children's Hospital, he says. "We want to be on the cutting edge of a better understanding of
childhood diseases, and to perfect cures for childhood diseases. With the addition of the Charles P. Darby Children's Research Institute,
the latest scientific advances will be expedited from the laboratory to the patient's bedside.
"The CRI goes hand-in-hand with the hospital," Dr. Greenberg continues. "Basic research is translated in the Children's Hospital to make
sure patients have access to truly state-of-the-art care. Children in South Carolina will be the immediate beneficiaries, but children
everywhere ultimately will gain as well."
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