Causepods

Welcome to another episode of Causepods! Today on the show we’re joined by Dr. Jen Stansbury Koenig, creator of HSCT Warriors Podcast, who is going to be defining for us what exactly autoimmune disease is and the role that hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCT) can play in the healing process. She discusses her own experience of being diagnosed with two serious illnesses, how she approached treatment and what it was that made her decide to start a podcast to advocate the cause for HSCT.

Jen talks about the strong case for this treatment, giving us statistics from clinical trials and shares some of the issues related to the drugs that are frequently prescribed for people suffering from autoimmune disease. We discuss the possible obstacles for patients wanting to receive HSCT treatment, including the resistance from the medical field and the reluctance of some insurance companies to cover the expenses. She also tells us more about her show and the people she typically interviews as well as the importance of having consistent support in championing a cause like this. If you want to find out more about this really interesting and potentially life-saving treatment, do not miss out on today’s show!

Please support Jen in anyway you can directly (non tax-exempt)

Link to Podcast:
https://hsctwarriorspodcast.com/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hsct-warriors/id1418589301?mt=2
https://soundcloud.com/hsctwarriors-podcast
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrHJky5Oj_CyMAGrAzPj4zg/videos?view_as=subscriber

Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/HSCTWarriorsPodcast/
https://www.instagram.com/hsctwarriorspodcast/

Key Topics:

• What HSCT stands for and what it is. (01:43)
• How autoimmune disease affects the body. (02:53)
• When Jen was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and later on, lime disease. (05:03)
• The motivation behind starting the HSCT Warrior Podcast. (07:55)
• Dr. Bert’s clinical trials that prove the success of HSCT. (08:31)
• The issues with using drugs to treat autoimmune disease. (10:25)
• More about how stem cells function. (12:50)
• The need for a hematologist, not only a neurologist. (18:06)
• Why it might not be so easy to get HSCT treatment. (20:52)
• What to do to get HSCT into your treatment plan. (22:38)
• Some numbers on the prevalence of autoimmune disease. (24:30)
• Why Jen decided on using podcasting as the platform for advocating HSCT. (25:46)
• What the first season of her podcast focused on. (26:52)
• Other people she typically interviews on the podcast. (27:29)

See the show notes and a transcript at http://www.causepods.org/podcast/hsct-warriors

Thanks for Listening!