Public Invited to Learn More about Non-Hodgin Lymphoma:
Free Program To Be Held May 11

Anyone interested in learning more about Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL) is invited to attend a special “Meet the Expert” program being held Thursday, May 11 from 12 noon to 1:00 p.m. in the Irene Dixon Auditorium at Roper Hospital, 316 Calhoun Street in downtown Charleston.  The program, presented by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society with support from Genentech BioOncology and Biogen Idec, includes a complimentary lunch.  It will share the latest information about risk factors, diagnosis, types, stages and treatment. The featured speaker is George F. Geils Jr., M.D., Medical Director for the Roper St. Francis Blood and Marrow Transplant Program.

Free parking will be provided.  Advance registration is required. For more information or to register, please call Anne Goodman with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at 1-800-613-0550.    

Each year, about 54,000 Americans learn they have NHL.  It is the sixth most common cancer in males and the fifth most common cancer in females in the United States.  NHL includes any of a large group of cancers of the immune system.  Lymphomas generally start in lymph nodes or collections of lymphatic tissue in organs like the stomach or intestines.  NHL can occur at any age, and are often marked by enlarged lymph nodes, fever and weight loss.

Dr. Geils has served as medical director of the Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) Program at Roper St. Francis since its inception nine years ago.  The program, which offers curative therapies to treat blood cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma, recently performed its 100th transplant procedure.  It is the only dedicated BMT Unit in the region and one of only two in the state to be accredited by the National Marrow Donor Program to perform unrelated donor transplants for patients without a match in their family. 

The Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant Program is part of the Roper St. Francis Cancer Center, which has been awarded the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons’ highest honor – Accreditation with Commendation.  The 3-year accreditation is bestowed to only the finest programs in the nation.