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  5. When High Cholesterol and Heart Disease Runs in the Family

Podcast - When high cholesterol and heart disease runs in the family: Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH)

Familial Hypercholesterolemia, FH for short. It is an inherited disorder that leads to aggressive and premature cardiovascular disease. In FH patients, genetic mutations makes the liver incapable of metabolizing (or removing) excess LDL (the bad kind of cholesterol). This includes problems like heart attacks, strokes, and even narrowing of our heart valves.  With this series of podcasts we will learn really what FH is, how to manage it, FH and Children, and women.


View the podcast transcript (PDF)

Podcast Description

Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a common genetic disorder that is underdiagnosed in approximately 1 in every 220 people. The FH Foundation’s Cat Davis Ahmed and Dr. Joshua Knowles Attending Physician in the Stanford Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Disease and FH Foundation, Chief Mission Advisor gives the full run down on what (FH) is all about, how do you know if you have FH all the way to what the future looks like for some with FH.

Familial Hypercholesterolemia, FH for short. It is an inherited disorder that leads to aggressive and premature cardiovascular disease. In FH patients, genetic mutations makes the liver incapable of metabolizing (or removing) excess LDL (the bad kind of cholesterol). This includes problems like heart attacks, strokes, and even narrowing of our heart valves.  With this series of podcasts we will learn really what FH is, how to manage it, FH and Children, and women.

Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a common genetic disorder that is underdiagnosed in approximately 1 in every 220 people. The FH Foundation’s Cat Davis Ahmed and Dr. Joshua Knowles Attending Physician in the Stanford Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Disease and FH Foundation, Chief Mission Advisor gives the full run down on what (FH) is all about -  how do you know if you have FH to what the future looks like for families affected by FH.

Podcast Participant Bios

Cat Davis Ahmed

Cat Davis Ahmed Ms. Davis Ahmed, Vice President, Policy and Outreach for the FH Foundation, where she works with individuals with Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) and the medical professionals who treat them to raise awareness of FH and improve the understanding, diagnosis, and care of this life-threatening genetic condition that too often leads to early heart disease. Cat herself has FH.

Dr. Joshua W. Knowles

Doctor Joshua W. Knowles Dr. Knowles is an Attending Physician in the Stanford Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Disease. He has had a longstanding interest in the genetic (inherited) basis of cardiovascular disease and in particular the use modern genetic techniques to improve our ability to diagnose and treat patients at risk of heart disease. Dr. Knowles has published over 35 papers focused on heart disease with research projects currently funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association. Dr. Knowles is Chief Mission Advisor for the FH Foundation.

FH Foundation

The FH Foundation is a patient-centered nonprofit organization, dedicated to research, advocacy, and education for all forms of Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH).Its mission is to raise awareness of FH and save lives by increasing the rate of early diagnosis and encouraging proactive treatment. If left untreated, this life-threatening genetic disorder leads to aggressive cardiovascular disease in men, women, and children of all races and ethnicities around the world. Learn more about The FH Foundation(link opens in new window).


Last Reviewed: Aug 28, 2018

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