Based on a clinical trial led by Leslie S. Kean, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, the FDA has approved abatacept as the first treatment to prevent acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). This historic approval will allow many more patients with cancer or blood disorders to safely and effectively undergo stem cell transplants, particularly racial and ethnic minority populations who have more difficulty finding appropriately matched donors.