Shannon Piche, Pharm.D., Clinical Pharmacist: I think it's very isolating to feel like you're the only person that you know, or the only person in your community that has a specific condition. And so to come to a place where it's like, "No, we care for hundreds of these patients a year," and "We know what you're going through," and "We know how we can help support you," is a pretty awesome thing.
Julie S. Lehman, M.D., Dermatologist: Immunobullous diseases are a category of disease where there is an autoimmune reaction against the skin. Basically, that autoimmune reaction attacks the glue that holds the skin together. They will often develop blisters or erosions or ulcerations, which can be very painful. Either on the skin or even on the mucosal surfaces as well, such as the mouth, in the eye, and the throat, for example.
Michael J. Camilleri, M.D., Dermatologist: Autoimmune blistering disorders can pretty much affect your everyday life. Pain and itching are bothersome symptoms. And also, because [the disorder] involves the skin, many times in exposed areas of the skin, like the arms and sometimes the face, there will be the stigma of the appearance of their skin. And therefore, they would find it very hard to socialize because of that reason.
Dr. Lehman: Each patient with immunobullous disease has a slightly different variant. Each person is an individual. So I think it's important that we tailor their care. One of the really unique resources we have here at Mayo Clinic is that we have a world-class Immunodermatology Laboratory. So that means that we can do testing on patients who have immunobullous diseases that are not straightforward. That [testing] is not available anywhere else in the country. And so that allows us to give answers in terms of diagnosis, which then allows us to pick the right treatments for those patients.
Dr. Piche: When you come to Mayo [Clinic], you still have a rare condition, but you're one of a few more at least. The providers that are caring for you have years and years of caring for this specific type of illness. And you're in a specialty clinic that literally is focused on you. It's also a place where we're going to understand you as a human, we're going to hear your journey.
Dr. Camilleri: The value of managing these disorders at Mayo Clinic is the multidisciplinary approach, which is all in one place. A lot of times in local communities, dermatologists themselves are not very familiar with these disorders. So Mayo [Clinic] has that advantage, the expertise of diagnosing and coming up with a treatment plan.
Dr. Lehman: One of the very important parts of our care experience having patients here is that we make the transition back home as seamless as possible. So to do that, we enjoy partnering with their home providers, discussing their care. Coming up with the best treatment plan that's both practical and feasible for the patient, and also, of course, [we're] engaging the patient in those decisions as well.
Dr. Camilleri: The most satisfying situation that I have with these types of patients is when they've come back to me and said, "You saved my life" or "I feel like my symptoms are gone." We're always here to support them. It's part of the Mayo [Clinic] philosophy.
Dr. Piche: What I hope that a patient feels is that we hear them, we understand them, we see their journey.
Dr. Lehman: Everyone has a single mission in mind, and that is that the needs of the patient come first. And I think that's really palpable when you come to Mayo Clinic. It's something very unique, and it drives every decision we make.
(bright music)