Joanne is a wife and mother with a large, supportive family. She is also a critical care nurse in southern California. 

 

After surviving a complicated and frightening illness from DRESS Syndrome due to the antibiotic Vancomycin, Joanne was left with multiple long-term medical complications. Following her recovery, she and her family underwent genetic testing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) to identify the known genetic risk markers for DRESS to Vancomycin. Results showed that Joanne, one of her children, and her brother all tested positive. Joanne hopes this knowledge will spare her family from the horrible experience she had with DRESS. 

 

She has since become a dedicated advocate for DRESS awareness, using her lived experience and knowledge to educate the medical and patient communities about this condition.