“I love genetics,” says Dr. Edith Cheng, MD, Medical Director of the Maternal and Infant Care Center and the Prenatal Genetics and Fetal Therapy Program here at Valley. “Genetics explains our life and our future. The information and potentials are endless. There are times I can close myself off in my lab, spending days in front of a microscope searching for answers.”
“What’s so absolutely crazy is we are all so different from each other. We’ve evolved over millennia, with the very foundation for how we are all built packaged in this thing called DNA. Evolution is not stagnant, it makes adjustments. We’ve evolved over time, yet we’re so different from each other. This is why the mother baby interaction is so critical. Generations continue to be impacted by the progeny of that original maternal ancestors.”
But it’s not just in the labs where Dr. Cheng finds her passion. “I love the patient interaction,” she continues. “I’ve spent decades working with super at-risk pregnancies, and I am humbled by what families go through. They really step up to the plate when times are hard. This has to make you a richer person, learning from them, rather than them learning from you.”
Dr. Cheng is a maternal fetal medicine specialist, a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine’s Division of Medical Genetics at the University of Washington. She also serves as Medical Director of the Maternal and Infant Care Center and the Prenatal Genetics and Fetal Therapy Program. In addition, Dr. Cheng is Program Director of the Prenatal Diagnosis and Treatment Program at Seattle Children’s hospital.
Dr. Cheng has been a member of the UW OB/GYN faculty since 1990. In addition to being board certified in obstetrics and gynecology and sub-specialty-certified in maternal-fetal medicine, she is certified in medical genetics and genetic counseling. Her clinical expertise includes prenatal diagnosis, genetics and maternal cystic fibrosis in women and fetuses with genetic conditions.
* The 2016 Seattle Met Top Doctors survey polled doctors, nurses and physician assistants across King, Snohomish, Kitsap and Pierce counties, asking “If you or a loved one needed medical care, whom would you choose?” Voters nominated their peers based on the provider’s level of experience and competency within their specialty, rapport with patients – including patient satisfaction and compliance with care recommendations – and ability to work effectively with colleagues across specialties to deliver the best care for patients.
