Genetic Medicine Clinics



Medical Genetics at the University of Washington is a tertiary specialty that provides clinical services to the general public as well as training. The clinics, housed at UW Medical Center, Seattle Children's Hospital (SCH) and Regional Medical Center (CHRMC), and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), are a unique resource in the WWAMI region for evaluation and diagnosis of people who have or are at risk for genetic diseases, and for long-term planning of follow-up and treatment in collaboration with their physicians. UW physicians, medical geneticists, and board-certified genetic counselors in the clinics work with individuals and their families to inform, diagnose, counsel, and refer for appropriate management. Many of these physicians are nationally and internationally recognized experts in their fields and often included among the "Best Doctors in America" compilations.
Please contact the clinics for information and appointments.




UW Medical Center Genetic Medicine Clinic

Adults and Families

Fuki Hisama, M.D., Medical Director
Robin L. Bennett, M.S., C.G.C., Co-Director
Debra L. Olson, Program Support Supervisor

Phone (206) 598-4030
Fax (206) 598-3269
Center on Human Development and Disability, Tuesdays
UW Medical Center, Thursdays

About 1900 patients are seen each year at the UWMC Medical Genetics Clinic, covering the full range of genetic disorders. The physicians (medical geneticists) and genetic counselors who staff the clinic have a range of expertise that covers the extent of the specialty and provide specific diagnoses and recommendations for care and follow-up of hundreds of rare genetic disorders, as well as the more common ones. Five specialty areas are emphasized:


Cancer.

There are many causes of cancer, and several genetic testing options are available. Those who may want to consult this clinic include persons with a personal or family history of cancers that may have an inherited component. The clinic’s team of physicians and genetic counselors review a patient’s personal and family medical history, provide information, and help to make an informed choice about testing. The clinic also offers DNA banking, or storing of genetic material from a blood sample for future use by other relatives. Staff members also provide educational lectures and programs to medical and lay groups.

Connective Tissue Disorders.

There are more than 200 different types of inherited connective tissue disorders, in which alterations in the molecules that make up skin, bone, tendons, ligaments, blood vessels and other supporting structures lead to an inherited condition. These conditions include such disorders as Marfan syndrome, the several types of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, the variety of conditions known as types of osteogenesis imperfecta, as well as skeletal dysplasias and chondrodystrophies. These disorders are generally uncommon as individual entities but, in aggregate, may affect almost 1% of the population. Yet they remain relatively poorly understood and underrecognized outside the realm of the Medical Genetics specialty clinics. The clinic’s team of physicians and genetic counselors review a patient’s personal and family medical history, come to a specific diagnosis when possible, provide information about the natural history of the disorder, help to make informed choices about testing, provide appropriate referral and follow-up, and introduce families to peer support groups at the local and national levels.

Inherited Skin Disorders.

There are more than 400 different types of inherited skin disorders in which alterations in the molecules that make up skin, hair, and nails lead to an inherited condition. They include forms of blistering skin conditions such as epidermolysis bullosa, scaling skin disorders, and disorders of pigment formation. These conditions are generally uncommon as individual entities but, in aggregate, may affect almost 1% of the population. Yet they remain relatively poorly understood and underrecognized outside the realm of the Medical Genetics specialty clinics. The clinic’s team of physicians and genetic counselors review a patient’s personal and family medical history, come to a specific diagnosis when possible, provide information about the natural history of the disorder, help to make informed choices about testing, provide appropriate referral and follow-up, and introduce families to peer support groups at the local and national levels.

Neurogenetics.

Neurogenetics Clinics
There are more than 200 different types of inherited neurological disorders in which alterations in the molecules that make up the brain and peripheral nerves lead to an inherited condition. These include such disorders as Huntington disease, early-onset and familial forms of Alzheimer disease, inherited forms of ataxia, muscular dystrophies, and degenerative disorders of the brain and nerves. These conditions are generally uncommon as individual entities but, in aggregate, may affect almost 1% of the population. Yet they remain relatively poorly understood and underrecognized outside the realm of the Medical Genetics specialty clinics. The clinic’s team of physicians and genetic counselors review a patient's personal and family medical history, come to a specific diagnosis when possible, provide information about the natural history of the disorder, help to make informed choices about testing, provide appropriate referral and follow-up, and introduce families to peer support groups at the local and national levels

Turner Syndrome.

Turner syndrome is one of the most common reasons for short stature and reproductive failure among girls and women and results from alterations in the number and structure of the X-chromosomes. Our clinic has an active population of more than 500 women and girls with this alteration in chromosome constitution and the expertise that goes with more than 20 years of follow-up and careful surveillance of this group. The clinic's team of physicians and genetic counselors review a patient's personal and family medical history, come to a specific diagnosis when possible, provide information about the natural history of the disorder, help to make informed choices about testing, provide appropriate referral and follow-up, and introduce families to peer support groups at the local and national levels.






Regional Genetics Clinics


UW Medical Center Genetic Medicine Clinic


Seattle Children's Hospital (SCH)


Biochemical Genetics Program


Seattle Children's Biochemical Genetics



Information for Genetic Medicine Clinic Observers




Administration

Fuki Hisama, M.D.
Medical Director
Faculty Profile

Robin L. Bennett, M.S., C.G.C.
Co-Director
Biographical Sketch


Attending Physicians

Thomas D. Bird, M.D.
Neurogenetics
Faculty Profile
COS (Community of Science)

Wylie Burke, M.D., Ph.D.
Cancer Genetics
Faculty Profile
COS (Community of Science)

Peter H. Byers, M.D.
Inherited Connective Tissue Disorders
UW Physicians profile
COS (Community of Science)

Robert M. Hershberg, M.D., Ph.D
Cancer Genetics, Immunology
Faculty profile

Marshall S. Horwitz, M.D., Ph.D.
Cancer Genetics, Genetics
Faculty profile
COS (Community of Science)

Gail Pairitz Jarvik, M.D., Ph.D.
Cancer Genetics, Genetics
Faculty profile
COS (Community of Science)

Wendy Raskind, M.D.
General Genetics and Cancer Genetics
Faculty profile
COS (Community of Science)

Virginia P. Sybert, M.D.
Dermatology Genetics, Turner Syndrome
Faculty profile
COS (Community of Science)


Genetic Counselors

Q&A with Robin Bennett

Robin L. Bennett, M.S., C.G.C.
Biographical Sketch

Britta Sjoding, M.S., C.G.C.
Biographical Sketch

Heidi K. Holmes, M.S., C.G.C.
Biographical Sketch

Corrie O. Smith, M.S., C.G.C.
Biographical Sketch


Social Worker

Donna Ross, MSW, LICSW
Neurogenetics Division