The Cardiac Amyloidosis Program is a multidisciplinary group of doctors including cardiologists, hematologists and neurologists among others who work together to create a comprehensive, patient-centered treatment plan for patients with cardiac amyloidosis. Amyloidosis is a clinical disorder that occurs when a protein called amyloid builds up in various organs in the body. When amyloid deposits in the heart, it interferes with blood circulation and causes the disease cardiac amyloidosis; the heart walls stiffen, excess fluid buildups in the body and this leads to heart failure. Patients may experience swelling in the belly or legs, feel short of breath and have discomfort or pressure in the chest during exertion. Amyloid can also invade numerous other organs like the skin and nerves leading to the patient experiencing other symptoms such as easy bruising or numbness in the hands or feet.
Early on in cardiac amyloidosis, the patient may experience nonspecific symptoms and the diagnosis may be mistaken for other conditions like heart disease due to high blood pressure. The best outcome of therapy necessitates early diagnosis as cardiac amyloidosis carries a serious prognosis. This includes diagnosis using tools such as cardiac MRI, nuclear scans, cardiac biopsy, as well as access to state-of-the-art treatment. We offer many new clinical trials to provide our patients access to novel therapies which help suppress the formation of new amyloid as well as manage cardiac-related complications.