News

Patient registries are a hot topic of rare disease research and many organizations are taking advantage of this resource by signing up their patient communities and connecting with researchers. Eric Sid, MD, program officer for the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR), said it is difficult to estimate how…

Experimental gene therapy 4D-310 continues to be generally safe and has effectively increased enzyme alpha-galactosidase (Gal A) blood levels in the first three patients enrolled in 4D Molecular Therapeutics’s clinical trial. These results were announced in the presentation “An Open-label, Phase 1/2 Trial of Gene Therapy 4D-310 in…

Horizon Therapeutics has launched its #RAREis Representation program aimed at increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion among patients with rare diseases. There are about 400 million people worldwide living with a rare disease; for many of them, access to diagnosis, care, and treatments can be challenging. Accessing better care depends on…

Protalix BioTherapeutics and its partner Chiesi Global Rare Diseases have applied to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for the approval of PRX-102 (pegunigalsidase alfa), an investigational enzyme replacement therapy, to treat adults with Fabry disease. This approval request, in the form of a marketing authorization application, has been validated by the EMA and now…

Bionews, the publisher of this website, hosted a virtual panel discussion on Rare Disease Day 2022, taking a deeper dive into what it’s like to live with a rare disease, including conversations about advocacy, mental health, survivor’s guilt, treatment of minority patients, and more. The Monday event, “A…

A rare disease puts an economic burden on the patients, families, and caregivers that it affects, and will no doubt be an integral part of discussions on Rare Disease Day 2022, which brings international awareness about the more than 300 million people living with rare disorders. Part of that…

Beginning enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) before age 16 is associated with reduced kidney and heart damage — relative to no treatment — in males with classic Fabry disease, according to a small study from the Netherlands. These early findings, concerning 10 years of treatment with Fabrazyme (agalsidase beta),…

The nonprofit RARE-X is creating an easily-accessible, centralized data hub for all rare disease patient data that can help researchers answer questions about existing disorders, discover new ones, and work toward finding treatments. It was spun out of the work that Nicole Boice, founder and chief engagement officer of…

It’s been nearly a year since the EveryLife Foundation for Rare Diseases released its expansive report finding the total economic burden of rare disorders in the U.S. to be nearly $1 trillion.

Since 2008, Rare Disease Day — the last day of February — has brought together patients, caregivers, family members, friends, and advocates from around the world to raise awareness and improve equity for the more than 7,000 known rare diseases that affect more than 300 million people. In 2022, the…