Explaining your circumstances : Grad school & low gpa

I am a hard working student and when I first started out in college I had a high GPA, however due to some medical problems that I had to deal with while in college my grades suffered tremendously and I graduated with a 2.3 GPA. I plan to go to grad school to redeem my low GPA, and to further my education for my career. I have been told by a college professor that no grad school will ever take me and that I probably wouldn't get a job anywhere. I am puzzled when it comes to what to do next. I'm not trying to get into one of the top business schools in the country,but I do want to get into a good school. Does explainging your reason for having a low GPA to the Admissions Committee along with a high GMAT score help your chances in getting into grad school? Is there anything that could be done that would help me with this situation?