Hayward Genetics Center at the Blood Cancer Showcase
Last week, Dr. Li delivered a presentation at the second annual Blood Cancer Showcase, hosted by Sophia Genetics. In his talk, he shared valuable insights from his experience in the field, along with his perspective on the future of diagnostic testing for hematological malignancies.
Hayward Genetics Center welcomes class of 2025
The Hayward Genetics center is thrilled to introduce our Master's in Medical Genetics and Genomics class of 2025!
Congratulations to class of 2022 alum Hasti Movaffaghi, MS
We are proud to announce that Hasti Movaffaghi (class of 2022) will be attending the Medical College of Wisconsin to pursue her dream of becoming an MD. We are thrilled to be a part of her journey and wish her the best of luck in this new chapter.
Congratulations, Hasti!
New Publication from the Hayward Genetics Center
We are proud to announce a new publication from the Tulane Hayward Genetics Center! The case report suggests that short stature is among the most common manifestations in patients with 20p13 subtelomeric microdeletion.
Read the publication here: https://doi.org/10.1002/ccr3.8927
Hayward Genetics Center Class of 2024
Congratulations to our 2024 graduates! We can't wait to see what you accomplish next!
Congratulations to class of 2022 alum Caide Bier, MS
We would like to congratulate Caide Bier on their acceptance to MGH Institute of Health Profession's Master of Genetic Counseling program. Admittance into Genetic Counseling programs is extremely competitive and this is an amazing accomplishment!
Caide has been a big part of the Hayward Genetics Center both as a Master's student (Class of '22) and as a Genetic Counseling Assistant (since May of '22). We are so proud to be a part of their journey to becoming a Genetic Counselor.
Hayward Genetics Center recognizes three first-year medical students
The Hayward Genetics Center would like to congratulate Jane Eichorn, Ryan Chozick and Anne D'Armond (below). Jane, Ryan, and Anne are first year medical students at the Tulane School of Medicine and were presented an Academic Excellence award for their outstanding academic achievement in the Medical Genetics Course taught by our faculty.
Congratulations Jane, Ryan and Anne!
Hayward Genetics Center attends the 2024 Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting
Our genetic counseling team and faculty attended the Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting this week in Toronto, Canada. The ACMG meeting is a chance for our team to learn about the latest advances in medical genetics, genomics and personalized medicine. We are proud to report that Dr. Li, our Molecular Genetics Laboratory Director, was onboarded as a committee member of Professional Practice and Guidelines Committee (PP&G) at the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). We also want to extend congratulations to Caide Bier, our genetic counseling assistant and Hayward alum, who presented their poster on Outcomes in 14 live births resulting from Pegvaliase-treated pregnancies in PKU-affected females during the conference.
Hayward Genetics Center publishes study on Pegvaliase treated pregnant women
A multicenter retrospective study reported by Tulane Hayward Genetics Center suggests that the only successful enzyme therapy for phenylketonuria (PKU) is safe during pregnancy. Since adults with PKU often have trouble staying in control and poorly controlled PKU in pregnant females is dangerous to the fetal development, the use of pegvaliase is a powerful tool for helping pregnant PKU mothers decrease risk of PKU-related fetal anomalies. This study reports the results of 14 healthy newborns whose mothers were able to control their PKU using pegvaliase. Read more here https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymgme.2024.108152
Congratulations to class of 2023 alum Ilaria Simeone, MS
We are so proud of our Class of 2023 alum - Ilaria Simeone! Ilaria presented her poster, “Narrative Explorations of Rare and Undiagnosed Genetic Diseases: Lived Experiences of the Diagnostic Odyssey” at the American Society of Human Genetics annual meeting earlier this month. The presentation is a fascinating look into harnessing the benefits of narrative and storytelling to better support the unique patient population that experiences rare and undiagnosed genetic diseases.
Ilaria graduated in May and speaks fondly about her time at the Hayward Genetics Center. "The master’s program was an incredibly enriching experience which foremost allowed me to strengthen my candidacy and successfully gain admission to medical school. Through the literature-based paper requirement, I had the opportunity to explore my interests, pursue scholarly work on the lived experience/psychosocial aspects of rare and undiagnosed genetic diseases, and to present this work at the American Society of Human Genetics Annual Meeting. I have also received valuable ongoing mentorship through the program, which has allowed me to sharpen my future goals of becoming a physician-investigator and pursuing a medical specialty with a genetics component."
We can’t wait to see what else you accomplish!
For more information on our one-year master’s program click here: https://medicine.tulane.edu/masters-medical-genetics-genomics
Hayward Genetics Center welcomes new faculty member Kennedi Jones, MS, GC
The Hayward Genetics Center proudly announces our newest faculty member Kennedi Jones, MS, GC in a dual role as Instructor and Genetic Counselor.
Kennedi joins us after earning her master’s degree in Genetic Counseling from the MGH Institute of Health Professions in Boston, MA. When asked why she chose genetic counseling, she explained, “I’ve always loved learning about genetics and had an interest in direct patient care. Genetic Counseling is the perfect blend of trying to analyze, interpret, and collaborate through research to understand complex genetics while helping patients and their families understand it as well. There are also many roles and places that Genetic Counselors can be a part of, making us versatile in many spaces.”
In addition to seeing patients, Kennedi will also teach our master’s students in Clinical Aspects 1 & 2, reviewing genetic disorders seen in clinic and providing tools for assessing patients with these conditions.
Hayward Genetics Director Appointed to Inaugural Governor’s Rare Disease Advisory Council
Governor John Bel Edwards has created the first Rare Disease Advisory Council which includes Hayward Genetics Center’s Director Hans C. Andersson, MD, FACMG. Dr. Andersson has been appointed to serve as a physician with expertise in the research, diagnosis, and treatment of rare diseases. Dr. Andersson has been a part of the Newborn Screening Advisory Committee for over 30 years and brings a long-standing reputation for rare disease advocacy and management.
The Rare Disease Advisory Council is an advisory committee that provides a platform for the rare disease community to have a voice within their state government. According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) website, there are over 7,000 known unique rare diseases and Louisiana is now one of the 24 states that have established legislation in support of the rare disease community. This council will offer expert and clinical advice to the Louisiana Department of Health, the Governor, and the legislature in order to address the needs of people who have been diagnosed with a rare disease.
More information can be found here:
https://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/newsroom/detail/3406
For more information regarding NORD:
https://rarediseases.org/
Congrats to our Metabolic Nutritionist, Grace Noh, MS, RD, LDN for winning the GMDI Pacesetter Award!
“Grace began her metabolic career at Tulane University School of Medicine in January of 2016. She is one of the primary dietitians for the genetics division. …In addition to her clinic role, she works with the Louisiana Newborn Screening program coordinating confirmatory testing for over 100 infants per year with abnormal screening results. She also provides education to Tulane students on the treatment of IEM and NBS and precepts dietetic interns throughout the year.
Grace was lead author on a publication “False-Positive Newborn Screen Using the Beutler Spot Assay for Galactosemia in Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency, published in JIMD reports in 2017. She presented a poster titled “The Super Responders: Kuvan Provides Significant Dietary Liberalization in 17 of 72 PKU Patients” at GMDI in 2018.
Outside of her clinical responsibilities, Grace has been an active member of GMDI since 2016. She initially joined the technology committee in 2018 and stepped into the co-chair role in 2019. In this position she helps manage the many facets of MetabolicPro. She participated in a webinar earlier this year detailing the function of MetabolicPro for the GMDI membership.
Grace has shown great enthusiasm toward her leadership in her metabolic career to-date. She is a great role model for other dietitians who are just beginning their journey in metabolism. She represents the future of GMDI leadership.”
NEW FACULTY IN HAYWARD GENETIC CENTER!
Yuwen Li, MD, PhD, Assistant Director of Molecular Genetics and Cytogenetics
It gives us great pleasure to announce that Yuwen Li, MD, PhD has joined the faculty of the Hayward Genetics Center as Assistant Director of Molecular Genetics and Cytogenetics. He will be appointed as Assistant Professor in Pediatrics. Dr. Li has just completed ABMGG-accredited training in Clinical Molecular Genetics and has previously completed the Cytogenetics training at the Hayward Genetics Center and is ABMGG board-certified in Clinical Cytogenetics.
Dr. Li completed his medical degree at Jianghan University Medical School in Wuhan, China before becoming a graduate student at Tulane University Medical School. He completed his PhD dissertation in Prof. Samir El-Dahr's lab in 2014 describing the epigenetic regulation of nephron development and differentiation. In 2015, he received Top Oral Abstract by Trainee award at the American Society of Nephrology annual meeting and Best Poster Presentation award at the Southeast Regional Genetics group annual meeting. Dr. Li will actively participate in expanding cancer genetic testing and help develop new non-invasive genetic screening methods for prenatal testing.
Congratulations Lulu and Yuwen!
Our Hayward Genetics Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics Lab Trainees, Lulu Mao, PhD and Yuwen Li, PhD, both passed their American Board of Medical Genetics and Genomics certifying exams in August 2017. We are very proud of both of these excellent trainees!!
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CDG Conference
On May 9 -10, 2017 Tulane Hayward Genetics Center hosted the annual CDG Patient, Parent, and Physician Meeting. The 2 day event, led by Dr. Eva Morava-Kozicz, allowed parents from across the country to come together and learn more about CDG from both local and international experts, as well as get 1-on-1 evaluations for their children during patient appointments.
Hayward Researcher Receives Genzyme Grant to Study Mitochondrial Theory in Multiple Sclerosis
Dr. Hans Andersson Voted Best Doctor
Hans Andersson, MD, was featured in the August 2015 Doctor's Issue of New Orleans Magazine. He has been a Best Doctor in Pediatric Genetics, Medical Genetics, and Pediatric Specialist - Metabolic Specialist every year since 1998.
Congratulations Dr. Andersson!
