CoRDS Cast

On this month's episode of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Kasey Woleben who is one of the founders of the Cure Mito Foundation, and Sophia Zilber who is the board member, patient registry director.

Kasey and her family have started several non-profits to save their son, Will, and other children facing mitochondrial diseases like SURF1 Leigh syndrome. 

Sophia has over 15 years of experience in pharmaceutical industry and is volunteering her expertise to help the rare disease community, in memory of her daughter, Miriam.

In mitochondrial disorders, the mitochondria’s ability to convert food and oxygen into energy is impaired because of a genetic mutation in the DNA. There are over 100 different mutations that can cause this condition. 

You will not want to miss the incredible story of these two families fighting to find a cure.

To learn more about the Cure Mito Foundation, please visit: https://www.curemito.org/

On this episode of CoRDS Cast, Ben sits down with Jacquelyn Stockdale who is the mother of Isla. Isla is an amazing child living with CLN3 Batten Disease. Isla first started having issues with her eyesight and was later on seen by an ophthalmologist. Later down the road, Isla was diagnosed with CLN3 Batten Disease. Due to Isla being diagnosis early, her family was able to really focus on strengthening every day. You will want to take time to listen to this amazing heartfelt podcast of Jacquelyn and her daughter Isla’s journey. To learn more about Isla’s story please visit: www.islasfaith.com

Enjoy!

On this episode of CoRDS cast, Polly gets the pleasure of sitting down with Doug Strott. Doug is the founder/president of the Scheuermann’s Disease Fund and also has this condition. Scheuermann's Disease is a spinal (skeletal) disease that typically presents itself in children during adolescence.  It is often noted by an accentuated curvature, or "hunched back" and if left untreated, may lead to significant health complications later in life. Doug will discuss his condition along with how important it is to advocate for rare conditions like Schueremann’s Disease. To learn more about Schueremann’s Disease please visit https://www.sdfund1.org. 

Enjoy! 

On this episode of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Kathy Young who is a strong advocate for Myhre Syndrome and also has a daughter diagnosed with this condition. Kathy’s daughter was diagnosed with Myhre Syndrome seven years ago and at this time there was not an organization or group created for this condition. Being less than 200 diagnosed with this condition, Kathy started a Facebook group where she could connect with people diagnosed with Myhre Syndrome. Creating a Facebook group would later on help set up a Myhre clinic at Mass General Hospital. 

Enjoy!

In our November edition of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Kristie DeMarco who is the president and founder of the Global DARE Foundation. In 2019 Kristie was diagnosed with Refsum through genetic testing. In two years she went from an iron man triathlete to walking in constant pain along with losing peripheral vision and sense of smell. Refsum is a genetic disorder that affects the metabolism of Phytanic Acid which is found in foods like red meat, dairy, and fish. Symptoms of this condition include retinitis pigmentosa, loss of smell, hearing loss, neuropathy, ataxia, and itchy skin. Early diagnosis is critical to get the specific diet for Refsum to slow down symptoms.

We are starting off September with a very inspiring story of two fathers who have children with Cystinosis. On this episode of CoRDS cast, Alyssa sits down with  Clay Emerson and Stephen Jenkins. Clay is a father to 6 year old Brooke who was diagnosed with Cystinosis at just 16 months. Stephen is a father of two sons diagnosed with Cystinosis, Sam and Lars. Cystinosis is a rare genetic metabolic disease that causes the amino acid, cysteine, to accumulate within the body’s cells. The build-up can cause damage to the tissues and organs including the kidney, eyes, muscles, liver and brain. Tune in to hear about the journey that Clay and Stephen took to become strong advocates for their children and for the community.

On this episode of CoRS Cast, Polly sits down with Robin Henry who is a strong advocate for DDX3x and also has a daughter, Lanie, with this condition. DDX3x Is caused by a spontaneous mutation at conception. This condition Primarily affects girls due to its location on the X-chromosome, though there are affected boys. Robin continues to be a strong advocate for her daughter’s condition and started a Facebook group called Gene DDX3x. For more information regarding this condition you can visit: https://ddx3x.org/

On this episode of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Breanna, who is a strong advocate for RERE Syndrome. Breanna’s daughter, Loghan is one of 30 diagnosed in the entire world with this condition. If you would like to follow Loghan and Breanna’s story, you can visit her Facebook page, Learning with Lolo. If your child has been diagnosed with RERE syndrome or you are looking for support, please visit RERE Syndrome on Facebook.

On this episode of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Haley Oyler and Lindsey Noonan to discuss the rare conditions their sons have, SETBP1.

Haley is the president and founder for the SETBP1 Society which brings awareness to this condition and unites families and researchers. While working with the SETBP1 Society, Haley also has a son with this condition and was diagnosed about 5 years ago with little information out there. Her hard work has paved the way for families to find a diagnosis at a young age.

Lindsay has a son with SETBP1 and was diagnosed at 7 months. Due to being diagnoses at such a young age, they were able to start early working on some of the issues that go along with this condition. Because of people like Haley, Lindsey’s son was one of the youngest children diagnosed with SETBP1.

This year on June 12th, 2021 the SETBP1 Society will participate in the Virtual Million Dollar Bike Ride. This annual festival brings together rare disease families, friends and supporters to raise funds for rare disease research and to spread awareness of rare disease. For more information please visit: https://www.setbp1.org/mdbr/

If you would like more information on SETBP1, you can visit: www.setbp1.org.

Thank you for listening!

On this month’s episode of CoRDS Cast, Alyssa sits down with Caroline Yiu. Caroline’s son Alex, was diagnosed with a very rare neurodegenerative disorder called NEDAMSS (Neurodevelopmental Disorder with Regression, Abnormal Movements, Loss of Speech, and Seizures.) This condition is caused by a spontaneous mutation in the IRF2BPL gene. Caroline’s family went on a 10 year journey to find a diagnosis for her son Alex. Caroline is also an advocate for families with children fighting chronic complex medical issues without a diagnosis but also those with rare diseases. For more information on resourses about the challenges of being undaignosed or diagnosed with a rare disorder you can visit: https://www.cureundx.com/. To hear more about Alex’s journey, please visit: https://www.alexsodyssey.com/