Newswise — MAYWOOD, IL – Living with a genetic disorder that calls for regular monitoring, appropriate treatment and emotional support requires a multidisciplinary team that works together to coordinate patient care. Those diagnosed with von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease have a resource for that complete and coordinated care in Loyola Medicine, which was recently named a VHL Clinical Care Center by the VHL Alliance.
"The VHL Alliance is proud to recognize Loyola Medicine as a VHL Clinical Care Center. The team at Loyola is well positioned to provide coordinated expert care and support to the VHL community of Greater Chicagoland and beyond," says Chandra Clark, MEd, VHL Alliance Executive Director. "We are excited to continue to work with some of the best medical professionals in the world and look forward to a fruitful partnership."
A rare hereditary condition, VHL occurs as tumors that can appear in up to 10 areas in the body. While all people are born with two copies of the VHL gene, an altered copy can lead to the growth of cysts and tumors. The disease appears differently in each person — tumors can grow unpredictably over time and cause life-changing problems due to location and size. Though most tumors are noncancerous, patients with VHL have a high risk of developing kidney cancer as well as tumors of the adrenal gland and pancreas.
Because VHL can affect so many different organ systems, it takes numerous experts across multiple disease sites and disciplines to keep track of a patient’s care plan. Loyola Medicine takes this comprehensive and personalized approach. A patient navigator helps guide patients through the steps needed for attentive surveillance to monitor any new or changing tumors, ensuring that those patients are seen by the necessary specialists.
"Patients with VHL have complex medical needs, as the condition affects various organs," says Gopal Gupta, MD, FACS. "Loyola Medicine has a multidisciplinary team of fellowship-trained physicians who are experienced in treating this condition in order to provide the best possible care."
For more information or to schedule an appointment, please visit myLoyola or call 708-CAN-HELP (708-226-4357).
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About Loyola Medicine
Loyola Medicine, a member of Trinity Health, is a nationally ranked academic, quaternary care system based in Chicago's western suburbs. The three-hospital system includes Loyola University Medical Center, Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, MacNeal Hospital, as well as convenient locations offering primary care, specialty care and immediate care services from more than 1,500 physicians throughout Cook, Will and DuPage counties. Loyola is a 547-licensed-bed hospital in Maywood that includes the William G. and Mary A. Ryan Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, a Level 1 trauma center, Illinois's largest burn center, a certified comprehensive stroke center and a children’s hospital. Having delivered compassionate care for over 50 years, Loyola also trains the next generation of caregivers through its academic affiliation with Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine and Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing. Established in 1961, Gottlieb is a 247-licensed-bed community hospital in Melrose Park with the Judd A. Weinberg Emergency Department, the Loyola Center for Metabolic Surgery and Bariatric Care and the Loyola Cancer Care & Research Facility at the Marjorie G. Weinberg Cancer Center. MacNeal is a 374-licensed-bed teaching hospital in Berwyn with advanced medical, surgical and psychiatric services, acute rehabilitation, an inpatient skilled nursing facility and a 68-bed behavioral health program and community clinics.
For more information, visit loyolamedicine.org. You can also follow Loyola Medicine on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.
About Trinity Health
Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, Catholic health care systems in the nation. It is a family of 115,000 colleagues and nearly 26,000 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 25 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 88 hospitals, 131 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 125 urgent care locations and many other health and well-being services. Based in Livonia, Michigan, its annual operating revenue is $20.2 billion with $1.2 billion returned to its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs.
For more information, visit www.trinity-health.org or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.
About the VHL Alliance:
The VHL Alliance (VHLA) is the preeminent resource and clearinghouse for those affected by von Hippel-Lindau disease, including patients, caregivers, researchers, and the medical community. VHLA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1993, which is dedicated to research, education, and support to improve awareness, diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life for those affected by VHL. VHLA is the leading funder of VHL research with over $2.6 million granted to support studies designed to find a cure. The VHL Alliance’s vision is Curing Cancer through VHL. For more information about the VHL Alliance, please visit www.vhl.org.
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