Jean McCathern

Hi, my name is Jean McCathern and I would like to introduce myself as your AlphaNet Coordinator.

I live in Highspire, Pennsylvania with my faithful companion, Fred, a 9-year-old Chihuahua. I have one daughter, Laura Doty, whose husband is currently deployed to Iraq, and three grandchildren, Noah, Allyson and Jason.

My background is in cryptographic maintenance and information technology and I have extensive managerial and consulting experience in public and military departments. I have worked for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the U.S. Navy National Maritime Intelligence Center, and I spent 25 years with the Air Force. During my time in the Air Force, I lived in England, Ankara and Adana, Turkey, Southern California, Wyoming, Nebraska, Texas and Maryland.

In 1980, I was diagnosed with asthma and I was told that it was not reversible. Then in 2004, repeated bouts of pneumonia caused me to consult a pulmonologist. I was tested during my first visit and diagnosed with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency. My pulmonologist later tested me for asthma and found that I do not have asthma at all, though I have many allergies.

I became a Pennsylvania support group leader three months after my diagnosis. I can tell you that I have learned more about Alpha-1 by helping others than I would have ever learned on my own. Now I am a member of a subcommittee for Clinical Resource Centers with the Alpha-1 Foundation, which has given me more opportunities to meet people who are involved with treating Alphas. I was also able to travel to North Carolina in 2008 to see how Prolastin is manufactured.