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Beaumont Community Lecture Series: 'Living with Crohn's and Colitis'

Public welcome: Beaumont Lecture Series presents 'Living with Crohn's and Colitis' March 5.

The Beaumont Lecture Series will present “Living with Crohn's and Colitis: Treatment options, research and tactics for daily living with inflammatory bowel disease” at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 5 at the Berman Center for the Performing Arts, 6600 West Maple Road in West Bloomfield.

The community education program will include presentations by Mitchell Cappell, M.D., Ph.D.; James Lynch, M.D., along with Beaumont employee, patient and author, Jill Sklar. A reception will follow. While admission to the event is free, attendees are requested to RSVP at theberman.org by selecting “buy tickets,” or by calling 248-661-1900.

Dr. Cappell is chief of Gastroenterology at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, and professor at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine. He was recently selected to join the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Gastrointestinal Drugs Advisory Committee. In this position, Dr. Cappell will evaluate data on the safety and effectiveness of drug products for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases.

Dr. Lynch is chief of Colon and Rectal Surgery, and senior vice president and physician-in-chief at Beaumont Hospital, Troy. He is also an assistant professor at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine; fellow of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons; and former president of the Michigan Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons.

The two physicians will present information regarding current research and treatment options for Crohn's and colitis patients. In addition, current Beaumont employee, long-standing patient and award-winning writer, Jill Sklar, will share her experience battling Crohn's disease.

Sklar is manager of Digestive Health at Beaumont Health System and has been a patient at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak for more than 20 years. She is the author of three books, “The First Year: Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis;” “Eating for Acid Reflux: A Handbook for Those with Hearburn;” and “The Five Gifts of Illness: A Reconsideration.”

According to the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, Crohn's disease is chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract. It most commonly affects the end of the small bowel and the beginning of the colon, but may affect any part of the GI tract. Closely related to Crohn's, ulcerative colitis is a chronic disease affecting only the large intestine, also known as the colon, in which the lining of the colon becomes inflamed and develops open sores or ulcers.

Both Crohn's disease and colitis are types of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, or IBD, a group of conditions characterized by an abnormal response of the body's immune system. In people with IBD, as the CCFA explains, the immune system mistakes materials in the intestine for foreign or invading substances. In response, the body sends white blood cells to attack the lining of the intestines, causing inflammation and ulcerations.

This is the second presentation in the Beaumont Lecture Series. Community sponsors of the event include: Chaldean News; Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America – Michigan Chapter; Detroit Jewish News; Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit; Project Bismutha; and Project Chessed.

Beaumont Health System is committed to providing advanced diagnostics and innovative treatment options for digestive diseases. This commitment is rooted in Beaumont's long-standing history of providing outstanding care for digestive conditions, which has been recognized in the U.S. News and World Report's “top 50 hospitals in the nation for gastroenterology,” 16 out of the past 18 years.

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