Kathryn "Kate" M. Winne

She survived more than ten occurrences of colon cancer beginning in 2006, inspired countless people through her faith, courage and unflaggingly upbeat spirit and gained national attention for her important role in the clinical trial that led to FDA approval for the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (better known by the trade name Keytruda) for the treatment of certain types of cancer.

Kathryn Marie Sievert was born on Guam, where her father was stationed as a dentist in the U.S. Air Force. When Kate was about two years old, the family moved to Wausau, Wisconsin, where her father opened a dental practice. She graduated from Wausau East High School, then from St. Olaf College, where she studied English and performed in one of St. Olaf’s world-famous choirs. She spent one of her undergraduate years studying abroad at Oxford University in England. Kate earned a master’s degree in English from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. While completing her thesis, she moved to Atlanta where she worked briefly in a television newsroom. There she met the man to whom she would be wed for almost 33 years, Mark Winne. They had two sons together, Jack Winne and Matt Winne, both of whom are young attorneys who made her immensely proud for their accomplishments but also for their commitment to faith and integrity. Soon after her brief foray into TV news, she found a calling as a teacher, primarily at the Lovett School where she taught English or held other positions for roughly three decades.

“She expected the most and brought out the best in her students,” said former pupil Jennifer Bertsch. “As she told me years later, ‘I think I was put on this Earth to teach English to 9th graders.’”

Kate was a leader in two churches in metro Atlanta, each for several years. At the first, Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Midtown, she served on the church council, as a Christian Education leader and host of a Bible study in her home. She would lead several Bible studies over the next several years. At Chamblee First United Methodist Church, her many activities included leading an effort to deliver Thanksgiving meals to homes in need, or to invite those without a place to go to the church. She enjoyed visiting other churches, including Peachtree Presbyterian and House of Hope Atlanta.

In 2006, she received an extraordinary opportunity to put her faith into action as never before. An elderly cousin Kate had not seen in many years sent her a letter, saying, in essence, “we have a colon cancer gene in our family; get checked.” Though she showed no outward symptoms, Kate arranged for a colonoscopy. It revealed a large tumor. A surgeon operated the next day and she commenced her first round of chemotherapy. Soon after its completion, Kate suffered catastrophic internal bleeding, landing her in an ICU. Her liver had seemingly shut down. An interventional radiologist determined she needed a procedure that would relieve the pressure between her heart and liver and stop the bleeding, but because of a complication, she should be transferred to Emory University Hospital where a particularly gifted specialist should attempt it. After it was over, the doctor indicated the pressure gradient between heart and liver was the highest he had ever seen, and her hemoglobin was the lowest of any of his patients that had survived. But there remained the issue of what to do about her liver. Until it amazingly began functioning normally a few days later.

As she rode home from the hospital, Kate remarked, “I’m glad I almost died, because I got to see a miracle.”

When cancer came back for the fourth time, she became a patient of one of America’s top surgical oncologists, Dr. Charlie Staley, of Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, whom she regarded as an instrument in the hand of God. One of the several surgeries he did lasted close to 12 hours and he removed an estimated 30-plus tumors. When her 9th occurrence of cancer showed up, surgery was not an option. There were no approved medical treatments on the table. In the 11th hour, Dr. Staley found a small clinical trial at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University for a cutting-edge immunotherapy drug. It was financially supported by the cancer charity Swim Across America and because of extraordinary results in patients like Kate, the FDA fast-tracked the drug for approval for patients whose cancers had genetic characteristics similar to Kate’s. She was featured on the CBS Evening News.

While the drug completely wiped out that occurrence, the cancer returned repeatedly. She survived other high-risk surgeries. Her family remains firm in their belief the only mathematically plausible explanation for her long survival was the power of prayer and that, in the end, having led people to Christ and ministered to countless friends and strangers about their own medical troubles, God determined she was ready for her reward. She spent her brief time in hospice with grace, faith and the courage born of the absolute knowledge she was headed for immeasurable joy with her Lord and Savior.

“Kate is dearly loved by so many for her kindness, grace, humility, thankfulness and genuine unending concern for others,” said clinical nurse specialist Susan Tomlin. “Her lasting impact on the staff across the Emory system who had the opportunity to care for her will stand as an example of endless determination and deep Christian faith in the face of illness and adversity.”

She is survived by her husband, Mark; sons Jack of LaGrange and Matt of Birmingham, AL; sister Elizabeth Dunlop of Wilmington, NC; mother-in-law Claire Winne of St. Simons Island; brothers-in-law Col. Christopher Winne, Scott Winne and Laird Dunlop; nieces and a nephew, and many more loved ones, notably including her caregivers, Lovett friends and WSB-TV family. She was predeceased by her parents, Dr. James Sievert and Audrey (Stuewer) Sievert.

Visitation is Saturday, June 13th, 5pm to 9pm at H.M. Patterson & Son-Oglethorpe Chapel, 4550 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta. To assist with COVID 19 guidelines, please sign up at https://doodle.com/poll/s4zsh2wn54whabvi if possible. Due to COVID 19, the memorial service will be announced later. If one wishes to donate in lieu of flowers, Winship Cancer Institute and Swim Across America played important roles in Kate’s survival.