May 15, 2017 | Featured, Patient Stories, Research
‘‘The drug works. It gives you your life back,” says Austin Jacobson. Watch the video
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a new biologic drug that is based on seminal research by Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, Professor of Dermatology, and Medicine (Clinical Immunology), at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The drug, dupilumab, was approved in March—fast-tracked because it is a “breakthrough therapy” for adult patients with uncontrolled eczema. “It brings hope to patients who have tried everything.” Dr. Guttman-Yassky says.
One of them is her patient Austin Jacobson, a personal injury defense lawyer in Manhattan. “Living with eczema is like having poison ivy from head to toe,” he says. “You can’t sleep because you’re itching so badly. It affects every single aspect of your life.” Mr. Jacobson took part in clinical trials of the drug, which is injected every two weeks, and still uses it now. He says he felt relief from itching “two hours after taking the first injection.”
Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, Professor of Dermatology, and Medicine (Clinical Immunology), at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
At least 31 million Americans are affected by some form of eczema. The most common type is atopic dermatitis, caused by a combination of genetic, immune and environmental factors. Dupilumab, sold by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals as Dupixent, is an antibody that binds to a protein, IL-4 receptor alfa, inhibiting the inflammatory response that leads to eczema’s rashes and itching. Dr. Guttman-Yassky’s laboratory was the first to map immune pathways underlying eczema, including those now targeted by dupilumab and other drugs in clinical trials.
Her team is among those testing more new therapies, including a drug made by Pfizer Inc. that targets a different immune molecule, interleukin 22 or IL-22. Dr. Guttman’s research was the first to identify the lymphocytes that produce IL-22, and show their link to eczema. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, she designed a study that tested IL-22 antibody targeting in the clinic and in the lab—a treatment that is showing promising preliminary results.
“These are exciting times for patients with eczema, and for me specifically, as I am able to contribute to the scientific development for this disease and help millions of patients worldwide,” Dr. Guttman-Yassky says. “This is a dream come through for a physician-scientist.”
As for Mr. Jacobson, he says that his skin, which had been “100 percent” covered with a scaly, flaking rash, is now largely clear. “The drug works,” he says of dupilumab. “It gives you your life back.”
Dr. Guttman-Yassky has received research funding from Regeneron, and drug and research support from Pfizer, and is working with most companies developing treatments for atopic dermatitis/eczema.
May 15, 2017 | Community, Featured
Barbara Barnett, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Mount Sinai Beth Israel, center left, and David L. Reich, MD, center right, flanked by two strong allies of the transgender community, New York City Councilwoman Rosie Mendez and New York State Assemblyman Richard N. Gottfried.
Patients, caregivers, family, friends, and elected officials recently gathered to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery. “What is CTMS? CTMS is a reflection of the vision of the Mount Sinai Health System,” David L. Reich, MD, President and Chief Operating Officer, The Mount Sinai Hospital, said at the event, on Monday, April 10, at Mount Sinai Beth Israel. “We see ourselves as champions of social justice, and one aspect of social justice is providing the highest quality, seamless, coordinated, and culturally sensitive care to the transgender community.”
The outpatient location offers care that incorporates primary, transition, and behavioral-health services. The Center completed its first surgical procedure at Mount Sinai Beth Israel in March 2016, and has since performed more than 200 procedures, including vaginoplasty, phalloplasty, metoidioplasty, facial feminization, chest-wall reconstructions, hysterectomy, and orchiectomy. CTMS is the first such center in New York, and among the pioneers in the nation. Health care services are delivered in a welcoming and affirmative environment devoted to the wellbeing of transgender patients.
Mahogany Phillips with Leonie Taylor, RN, a Senior Nurse Manager at Mount Sinai Beth Israel.
“We’re all proud of what we have accomplished, and are enthusiastic about what the future holds for us,” Dr. Reich said. This summer, the Center will welcome its first fellows—one in transgender surgery and another in psychiatry—and an experienced reconstructive urologist, in further pursuit of Mount Sinai’s core missions of clinical care, education, and research.
Mahogany Phillips, who reunited with friends and caregivers at the event, says that while growing up, she felt like “just a regular girl” and had surgery at Mount Sinai in September 2016 and March 2017. “For me it was important to make me comfortable in my own body and to see myself, whole, in the mirror,” she says.
Read more in the HuffPost about how parents can play a major role in keeping their transgender children healthy and safe
May 15, 2017 | Community, Featured
Wesley Johnson volunteers with Mount Sinai’s Ambassador and CARE programs.
More than 1,200 volunteers at The Mount Sinai Hospital devote their time and energy to supporting numerous inpatient and ambulatory programs, laboratories, and offices. “We are proud of our dedicated volunteers who play a vital role in supporting Mount Sinai’s mission,” says Cynthia Levy, Director, Department of Volunteer Services.
Volunteers in Mount Sinai’s CARE (Care and Respect for Elders in Emergencies) Program, for example, provide much needed support to elderly patients in the Emergency Department.
In addition, 22 carefully selected and trained volunteers in Mount Sinai Health Partners’ (MSHP) Care Management Program help prevent hospital readmissions among patients who would otherwise be at high risk for returning to the hospital within 30 days and incurring unnecessary costs, as well as increasing their susceptibility to hospital-borne infections. The MSHP Care Management Program includes the Preventable Admissions Care Team (PACT) initiative. “Their efforts assist the staff in clinically assessing and enrolling patients,” says Volunteer Coordinator Emily Weinger.
Volunteers also provide assistance in the Hospital Delirium Program, where they use nonmedical interventions that provide patients with cognitive stimulation and help improve patient outcomes by making detailed observations and providing medical staff with valuable feedback.
Volunteer Marie-Claire Noel
For Jean Claude and Marie-Claire Noel, volunteering at Mount Sinai is a commitment the married couple has been keeping for a combined total of 29 years. Mrs. Noel is a volunteer in the Child Life Program and Creative Arts Therapy Department of the Kravis Children’s Hospital at Mount Sinai, where she puts patients and their families at ease during a stressful time in their lives. Every week, she provides inventive activities—playing board games and making origami sailboats and flowers out of pipe cleaners—that comfort children and adolescents of all ages.
More than 10 years ago, Mr. Noel spearheaded the Patient Liaison Program at the Derald H. Ruttenberg Treatment Center of The Tisch Cancer Institute, where he continues to serve as a volunteer. Through the Program, volunteers meet with new patients to provide support and information about the Ruttenberg Center’s services. Mr. Noel also has been a member of the Patient and Family Advisory Committee since its inception, working with patients, caregivers, and administrators from cancer centers throughout the Mount Sinai Health System to improve the overall patient experience.
May 4, 2017 | Featured, Insights
By agreeing to an increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health through the end of the fiscal year, Congress is sending a clear message to President Trump: federal support for scientific research is too important to be subject to a blunt budget ax. The President and his staff need to hear this message loud and clear.
Read the column in Forbes
Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | Featured, Research
The CT scan, left, shows the 85 cc intracerebral hemorrhage. The CT scan, right, was performed on postoperative day 1 and shows complete evacuation of the hematoma.
Spontaneous bleeding in the brain, known as intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), remains the least treatable and most devastating form of stroke. While it accounts for only 15 percent of all strokes, it is a leading cause of mortality, morbidity, and disability worldwide, and few effective treatment options exist. Over recent months, however, Mount Sinai physicians have taken a leading national role in creating and implementing a new minimally invasive technique that is showing promise.
ICH occurs when a small artery in the brain leaks blood directly into surrounding tissue and forms a localized hematoma (clot), which continues to destroy neurons and causes life-threatening pressure on the brain. Loss of balance, blurry vision, and difficulty speaking are among the common symptoms, as well as headache and vomiting, which increase gradually over minutes to hours.
This sequence demonstrates the steps of the endoscopic evacuation procedure including placement of the sheath into the hematoma (A), aspiration of the hematoma (B), irrigation ofthe cavity (C), and removal of the sheath (D).
The effort is being led by J Mocco, MD, MS, Director of the Cerebrovascular Center at the Mount Sinai Health System, and Professor and Vice Chair for Education in the Department of Neurosurgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Christopher Kellner, MD, Director of the Intracerebral Hemorrhage Program at Mount Sinai and Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery.
Over the course of 15 months, they have treated nearly 50 patients with a novel strategy to evacuate blood clots using ultrasound imaging, paired with intraoperative CT
scanning and MRI-guided navigation, to precisely locate the blood clot within the brain. Through a tiny hole in the skull, a sheath containing a camera and an experimental suction device, known as the Apollo™ System, is navigated to the clot. The physicians then aspirate the clot with the Apollo device, normalizing the brain pressure.
J Mocco, MD, MS, left, and Christopher Kellner, MD
In 2016, Dr. Mocco was named co-principal investigator of a Phase I clinical trial that will enroll approximately 50 patients at 10 sites across the United States to test the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of this procedure when compared to previously published standards. The trial, called the INVEST trial, is funded by Penumbra, Inc., the company that developed the Apollo System, and is scheduled to commence in May.
“We have just completed a six-month follow-up for the first 28 patients treated with this device, and although the data are preliminary, it appears that patients overall are doing very well with this procedure,” says Dr. Mocco.
One recent patient—an extremely active 86-year-old classical pianist—presented to Mount Sinai Beth Israel in February. “He came in with left arm and leg paralysis, slurred speech, and lethargy,” says Dr. Kellner. A CT scan revealed a very large 85 cc hemorrhage, and he was transferred to the Intracerebral Hemorrhage center at Mount Sinai West. Given his age, and the size and the location of the hemorrhage, he scored a ‘4’ on the ICH Score, which predicts a 97 percent chance of mortality within 30 days.The physicians removed the clot within 24 hours of the hemorrhage.
“He has made a remarkable recovery,” says Dr. Kellner. “He was discharged to the rehabilitation unit at The Mount Sinai Hospital after only 10 days. Currently, he is cognitively almost back to normal, can walk with a walker, and is back to playing the piano.”
Dr. Mocco has received research grants from Penumbra, Stryker, Microvention, Medtronic, and Codman.
Updated on Jun 30, 2022 | Featured
Members of the Long Island Transplant office include, far right, Priya Grewal, MD, Associate Professor, Medicine (Liver Diseases), with, from left, Taneil Wilson, Maureen O’Reilly, RN, and Geena Mapoy, RN.
Comprehensive pre- and post-surgical follow-up care for adult patients undergoing liver, kidney, and pancreas transplants at the Recanati/ Miller Transplantation Institute at Mount Sinai in Manhattan is now available at a new Mount Sinai Doctors facility in Hewlett, New York.
The Long Island Five Towns practice provides patients with the convenient expert care that is critical to their successful outcomes both in the weeks before surgery, when patients make regular office visits to check on their health and perform tests, and in post-surgical visits, when their immunosuppressant medications are carefully monitored.
“Patients are much happier, and they say they actually feel better knowing they don’t have to travel into the city for every visit,” says Priya Grewal, MD, Associate Professor, Medicine (Liver Diseases), who leads Mount Sinai’s liver transplant efforts on Long Island. The patients also understand that having the transplant procedure performed at The Mount Sinai Hospital is a critical component in ensuring a successful outcome.
“We have removed barriers and improved access to care,” says Vinita Sehgal, MD, Assistant Clinical Professor, Medicine (Nephrology), who leads Mount Sinai’s kidney and pancreas transplant efforts on Long Island.
Removing the stress associated with traffic, parking, and longer commuting time makes the entire process easier on patients and their families. While the actual transplant surgeries will continue to take place at The Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, patients will be able to see the entire transplant team—doctors, nurses, social workers, nutritionists, and support staff—in the Long Island office. The location features a large, comfortable waiting room and plenty of parking.
Sander S. Florman, MD, Director of the Recanati/Miller Transplantation Institute, and the Charles Miller, MD Professor of Surgery, says the response to the opening of the Long Island office has been overwhelmingly positive and many patients are booking appointments there, a reflection of the reputation and track record of the transplant program at Mount Sinai.
“When considering a highly delicate and technical operation like a liver or kidney transplant, experience matters,” Dr. Florman says. The Institute, one of the largest and most comprehensive adult and pediatric abdominal transplantation centers in the world, has performed nearly 9,000 transplants and marked the 50th anniversary of its first kidney transplant this year. Having performed more than 4,000 liver transplants—many more than other Manhattan programs— Mount Sinai’s team is among the most experienced.
The new Long Island office is located within a large Mount Sinai Doctors practice, which also houses primary care physicians and specialists, and features expanded hours.
