Inside Pediatrics Spring 2025

HEMATOLOGY + ONCOLOGY

A New Chapter in Neurofibromatosis Care

CHILDREN’S AND UAB BUILDING ON ALREADY SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM

N eurofibromatosis (NF) is a complex genetic disorder of the nervous system, marked by the growth of tumors—malignant and benign—along nerve sheath cells. In addition to tumor growth, it impacts nearly every organ, including the skin, eyes, heart and bones, and causes neurological symptoms such as ADHD, speech disorders and learning disabilities. There is no cure, although new treatments are emerging. Thus, it requires intensive management with a multidisciplinary team, which is exactly what the Neurofibromatosis and Schwannomatosis Clinic at Children’s of Alabama and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is designed to do. Neuro-oncologist Rebecca Brown, M.D., Ph.D., directs the adult portion of the clinic and pediatric neuro-oncologist Katie Metrock, M.D., directs the pediatric side. The two work closely together, with Brown seeing patients as young as 12 and both teaming up to create a transitional program for children moving into adult care.

Mt. Sinai Health System in New York City. “I tell people that I’m the most generalist sub-specialist that exists because NF experts are the only ones who really understand, pay attention to and address all these many aspects.” “Even though they all have the same diagnosis of NF, every patient is different, and every family is a little different,” Metrock said. “So, how do we approach care in a way that makes the most sense for each patient?”

Rebecca Brown, M.D.

Katie Metrock, M.D.

For Brown, that means shifting the adult clinic from one that’s been focused on diagnosis, genetics, and disease phenotype to one that can have a greater clinical impact on patients. “My focus

“The disease affects every aspect of these patients’ lives,” said Brown, who recently moved to UAB from

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