Undiagnosed Diseases Network

June 22, 2023

Mosaicism and genetic disease

Genetic mosaicism — when the body’s cells do not all have the same genetic makeup — could generate variants previously thought to be spontaneous in genetic disease, and detecting parental mosaicism could clarify recurrence risk for future children.

By Leigh MacMillan
November 4, 2021

VUMC named a NORD rare disorders center of excellence

By Nancy Humphrey
Members of the Vanderbilt Undiagnosed Diseases Program include (front row, from left) Mary Kuziura, DNP, Anna Bican, John Fahrenholz, MD, Kevin Byram, MD, Lisa Bastarache, MS, (back row, from left) Joy Cogan, PhD, John Phillips III, MD, and Rizwan Hamid, MD, PhD.
April 15, 2021

VUMC offers new program for undiagnosed diseases

Vanderbilt University Medical Center, an original member institution of the National Institutes of Health’s Undiagnosed Diseases Network, (UDN) is launching its own program, the Vanderbilt Undiagnosed Diseases Program (VUDP), which will operate alongside the UDN. The VUDP goal is to expand services to many more patients who are living with the often-dire consequences of an undiagnosed disease.

By Nancy Humphrey
October 8, 2020

Undiagnosed Diseases Network continues to excel despite pandemic

Though the COVID-19 pandemic halted in-person patient visits at Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) sites, including Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s, since March, groundbreaking behind-the-scenes work continues.

By Nancy Humphrey
September 4, 2019

When it comes to patients’ medical mysteries, the VUMC Undiagnosed Diseases Network team is on the case

By Nancy Humphrey
Young Mady Krauter, right, and her family — sister, Ali, and parents Brent and Kim — have been on a diagnosis journey with the Vanderbilt Undiagnosed Diseases Network.
March 14, 2019

Undiagnosed Diseases Network helps guide girl’s medical journey

On July 6, 2017, the Krauter family of Hiawatha, Kansas, received a belated 4th birthday present for their younger daughter, Mady — a diagnosis for a host of worsening neurological symptoms that they first noticed when she was 3 months old.

By Nancy Humphrey
February 7, 2019

Counselors guide patients in interpreting genetic tests

Certified genetic counselors (CGCs) are among the first faces that patients see once accepted into Vanderbilt’s Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) where hopefully they will gain a diagnosis.
By Nancy Humphrey
September 27, 2018

VUMC’s Undiagnosed Diseases Network site gains NIH renewal

By Nancy Humphrey
June 28, 2018

UDN team strives to solve challenging medical mysteries

Jun. 28, 2018—The anonymous man being discussed in a conference room at Vanderbilt University Medical Center used to be healthy and athletic, but has suffered from slow progressive muscle weakness for some time and now uses a wheelchair to get around.
By Nancy Humphrey
March 2, 2017

UDN program dedicated to solving medical mysteries

It’s human nature to need answers. Patients with debilitating symptoms need a diagnosis — somewhere to place the blame, a starting point to search for answers.
By Nancy Humphrey
September 16, 2015

Vanderbilt is one of seven centers now accepting patients for Undiagnosed Diseases Network

Eighteen-year-old Rachel Barnett of Robertson County is one of the first patients to be enrolled in the Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center — one of seven medical centers around the country participating in a clinical research initiative of the National Institutes of Health to identify rare disorders in patients.
By Nancy Humphrey
July 1, 2014

Vanderbilt selected to participate in Undiagnosed Diseases Network

Armed with a $7.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Vanderbilt University Medical Center is one of six medical centers around the country selected to participate in a network to develop effective approaches for diagnosing hard-to-solve medical cases (undiagnosed diseases).
By Nancy Humphrey