Patient Stories
Taking life with hemophilia one day at a time
Hemophilia has always been part of Kayla Klein’s life. Her father, David, had the condition. Her son, Robbie, has it too. For years, though, Kayla has also surrounded herself with the right people — people who know hemophilia and who have helped her and her husband Joel create a life where the condition isn’t something ... Read More about Taking life with hemophilia one day at a time
Health and Parenting
What role do genetics play in pediatric leukemia?
Leukemia is the most common childhood cancer, accounting for 31 percent of cancers in children younger than 15, and 25 percent of those younger than 20. Most young patients develop leukemia because of a mutation, or DNA change, that occurs randomly in a blood cell only, and is not inherited from a parent. On the other ... Read More about What role do genetics play in pediatric leukemia?
Research
Genetics drive deep investigations into blood cell production
Knowing how different kinds of blood cells form from their stem cell progenitors can shed light on blood disorders and aid in finding new treatments. A series of recent studies co-led by researchers at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center applied a variety of genetic tools to provide new insights on blood cell production. ... Read More about Genetics drive deep investigations into blood cell production
Patient Stories
Rylan’s story: A fixed and full tummy
Our sweet son Rylan cried all of the time as a baby. We were told by our local pediatrician in Texas that he had acid reflux. For the first year of his life, we sat in a rocking chair and rocked him nonstop while he cried. One night, I fell asleep with him on the couch ... Read More about Rylan’s story: A fixed and full tummy
Clinical Care
Fetal treatment for vein of Galen malformations
Vein of Galen malformations (VOGMs) are rare, life-threatening vascular malformations that often cause heart failure in neonates. The preferred postnatal treatment for VOGM is transarterial embolization [1]. Although often diagnosed in utero, currently no in utero treatments exist. The Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) at Boston Children’s Hospital and Brigham & Women’s Hospital have agreed that ... Read More about Fetal treatment for vein of Galen malformations
Research
Opioid alternative? Taming tetrodotoxin for precise painkilling
Opioids remain a mainstay of treatment for chronic and surgical pain, despite their side effects and risk for addiction and overdose. While conventional local anesthetics block pain very effectively, they wear off quickly and can affect the heart and brain. Now, a study in rats offers up a possible alternative, involving an otherwise lethal pufferfish ... Read More about Opioid alternative? Taming tetrodotoxin for precise painkilling
Clinical Care
Empowering pediatricians to provide mental health care
By late adolescence, up to 20 percent of children will have experienced impairing levels of anxiety, depression, and/or ADHD, the most common and treatable mental health conditions. But child behavioral health specialists are in chronic short supply with long wait lists. Massachusetts, for example, has nearly 300,000 youths with at least one diagnosable psychiatric disorder ... Read More about Empowering pediatricians to provide mental health care
Clinical Care
Expanding on a lifetime of heart care: The BACH Program
As more patients born with congenital heart disease (CHD) live well into adulthood and older age, there is an increasing demand for clinicians who understand their complex and unique needs. Since its inception more than 25 years ago, the Boston Adult Congenital Heart (BACH) Program has been a leader in adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) ... Read More about Expanding on a lifetime of heart care: The BACH Program
Patient Stories
Incredible Teddy: Thriving with CDH
Andi Lodico left for the hospital at 1 a.m., in labor with her second child. She didn’t return home for two months. Just a few weeks earlier, she and her husband, Phil, had been at a routine ultrasound appointment when they received some troubling news. Their baby, Teddy, appeared to have a rare and potentially ... Read More about Incredible Teddy: Thriving with CDH
Patient Stories
Josh finds recipe for success from endocrine-oncology team
As a chef in training who dreams of opening his own restaurant, Josh Gartland, 15, knows the importance of a good recipe. When it comes to the genetic disorder known as von Hippel-Lindau syndrome, Josh also knows the value of a good treatment plan, and experts in the Endocrine-Oncology Program at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center ... Read More about Josh finds recipe for success from endocrine-oncology team