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Moderator: Meet Jean, living with hATTR amyloidosis.

Jean: I was always active, but started to experience mysterious symptoms that continued to worsen over the years. We weren’t sure how or if they fit together. My wrists started hurting and my fingers went numb. My feet were swollen and then later I started losing weight. But it wasn’t until one night when I fell on the stairs of a restaurant that I hit my tipping point and knew I needed to find an answer. Around that time, my niece had called to tell me my sister was diagnosed with a rare, inherited disease called hATTR amyloidosis. So I went to my doctor to get tested and it turns out, I had it too. The condition affects people differently, even members of the same family. For me, it was my nerves, heart and digestive system. My diagnosis felt like the missing piece to the puzzle. Even my doctor was surprised at first, because it’s so rare. But when he looked at my family history, it all started to make sense. Now, I want my family and everybody else to know what to look out for. If you suspect you might be at risk for hATTR amyloidosis, it's important that you talk to your doctor. There are options to help manage the disease but it starts with getting the right diagnosis.

Moderator: Learn more about hATTR amyloidosis at The Bridge.