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º£½ÇÉçÇø — John Palla, MD, the Co-director of the Cystic Fibrosis Center at Lurie Children's is a co-investigator on two grants that supports the first national study examining what it means to identify as LGBTQIA+ and have cystic fibrosis. 

The four-year , funded by Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, is a national three-part study of adults 18 years and older who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual or other sexual/gender minority (LGBTQIA+) with cystic fibrosis. Dr. Palla, who works within a scientific team, is helping to build a registry and collect data that will aid in better understanding the medical and psychosocial needs of this marginalized community.  He is also actively engaged in creating provider and CF team member surveys about their knowledge and understanding of the LGBTQIA+ community.  Querying the providers’ knowledge and experience can help us gauge what education or resources are needed to help CF providers and teams optimize their ability to provide a level of thorough and compassionate care for their CF patients who identify as LGBTQIA+, said Dr. Palla. The third and final part of the study includes patient-focused interviews to hear directly from the LGBTQIA+ patient and their first-hand experiences with CF. Dr. Palla is part of the team that meets frequently to review the identified themes.

No one has specifically looked at what it means to be LGBTQIA+ and have a chronic disease. Understanding the intersectionality of identifying as LGBTQIA+ and having a chronic illness, such as CF,  through this community-based qualitative approach can help shape and drive interventions in the future, added Dr. Palla. The study is expected to wrap up in 2026.

The lives of people with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) have improved dramatically since the groundbreaking CFTR modulator therapy was FDA-approved in 2019.

Today, John Palla, MD, working together with the Chicago Institute For Fetal Health (CIFH), led by Aimen F. Shaaban, MD, have seen promising results by using elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (ETI) in mothers without CF (carriers of genetic mutation) who have fetuses with CF complications during pregnancy.  

The fetal exposure to ETI through mothers use of medication during pregnancy has allowed for infants to have no serious complications of CF after birth. In one patient, a fetus had signs of a bowel obstruction and once the mother started the ETI treatment, the bowel obstruction resolved prior to delivery. 

Physicians first learned that ETI modulator therapy might also help fetuses with Cystic Fibrosis when women with CF being treated with the therapy were becoming pregnant more easily. Currently there is still little known about fetal exposure to ETI, as well as infant exposure, given ETI is currently FDA-approved for children as young as two years old. There are no current studies on the use of ETI for non-CF mothers whose fetuses have been diagnosed with CF. Dr. Palla, in partnership with the CIFH, are currently working on a protocol to better understand prenatal and post-natal exposure to ETI to help improve outcomes for CF newborns.

Danielle C. Beachler, MD, joined the division on January 1. She has an interest in aerodigestive disorders and will be the pulmonary lead for the program. Previously at Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin Texas, where she served as the CF center director and participated in the aerodigestive program for the last 10 years.  Dr. Beachler has more than fifteen years of experience and is board certified in general pediatrics and pediatric pulmonology. Her areas of interest include: Aerodigestive issues, Cystic Fibrosis, Non- CF bronchiectasis, Asthma and Chronic Lung Disease.  She enjoys collaborative care and participating in multidisciplinary clinics that can improve the health and quality of life for some of the sickest and most complicated patients.