Expo unites doctors, patients

A rare conference that brings patients with leukemia and lymphoma together with doctors performing lifesaving transplants takes place today in Rosemont.

The conference is free and open to the public. It aims to describe the benefits of bone marrow, stem cell and cord blood transplants to patients and their families dealing with blood cancers.

Doctors from all of the transplant centers in Chicago will serve as presenters at the event, along with survivors of leukemia and lymphoma.

They hope to reach patients who know they will need a transplant, as well as those in active cancer treatment or remission, for whom a transplant might be an option in the future.

Presentations will take place from 7:30 to 11:45 a.m., before a free lunch and survivors' panel, leading to breakout sessions until 2:30 p.m. with each of the doctors concerning their specialties.

The conference is at the Westin O'Hare, 1600 N. River Road in Rosemont. Free parking and a continental breakfast are available in addition to the lunch.

This is the fourth year members of the Leukemia Research Foundation in Glenview have mounted the event. Support from Loyola University Health System, the National Marrow Donor Program and the Coleman Foundation allows them to provide the program free of charge.

"It's important to note that it is patient-focused -- and not for educational credits for the medical profession," says Kevin Radelet, executive director of the Leukemia Research Foundation. "As far as we know, it's the only one of its kind in the country."

Dr. Patrick Stiff, director of the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, came up with the idea.

He points to statistics from the National Marrow Donor Program that suggest only one-third of eligible patients are getting transplants.

"That means that two-thirds of patients eligible for potentially lifesaving therapies are not getting it done," Stiff says. "It's an unusual treatment that changes rapidly, with many nuances and changes that not even doctors can keep up with."

To bridge that information gap, he conceived the idea of taking education about transplants to the patients, giving them the ability to talk directly with doctors from all of Chicago's major transplant centers about the latest treatment for their disease.

Meeting schedule

Here's the list of topics at today's free conference for patients and caregivers on bone marrow, stem cell and cord blood transplants.

8:10 a.m.: acute myelogenous leukemia

8:30 a.m.: National Marrow Donor Program overview

9:15 a.m.: chronic lymphocytic leukemia

9:35 a.m.: indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

10:15 a.m.: matched unrelated donor and cord blood transplants

10:45 a.m.: bone marrow transplant as an option for acute lymphocytic leukemia

11:15 a.m.: myeloma

11:45 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.: lunchtime patient panel and disease-specific breakout sessions