Dr. Chris van Tulleken

But in your experience, whatever the cause of someone's lymphedema, primary or secondary, whatever's driving it, with effective management, there's always ways of making it easier to live with and reducing the rate of complications and reducing the progression.

You recently got a very large medical research council, an MRC grant to carry out research in primary lymphedema.

Tell us about what you've learned about the genetic causes and about the connections to the other valves in the body.

And how will those patients with primary or genetic lymphedema, how do they present with a swollen limb or swollen body part?

And is it the same gene affecting then the valves in other places of the body, the ureter, the heart?

Really?

Christiana, thank you so much for staying for Doctor's Notes for a deeper dive.

Thanks so much.

Well, that was very good medicine.

It was so good that Christiana could stay a little longer.

What struck you about what we just said on Doctor's Notes?

Yeah, it was really nice.

The idea that the... It should make us all a little more humble about what we don't know in medicine.

What struck me was how Christiana highlighted the connection between the lymphatic system and so many different other bodily systems.

Many of my patients that have these recurrent infections in their limbs probably have, or definitely have, lymphatic drainage problems.

And her genetic research is showing this as well, that the problems with the valves in the lymphatic system can also seem to be linked to problems with venous valves, heart valves, so that there are deep connections.

And I think what she's discovering is really exciting.

I think that's it for this episode.

It's time to sign off the Doctor's Notes.

I'm Dr. Chris.