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Cancelled! Postponed! How do we roar for rare in the midst of a crisis?

Cancelled! Postponed! How do we roar for rare in the midst of a crisis?

by | Apr 3, 2020 | Activities, Collaboration, Events, Front page news, Raising awareness

Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Cancelled! Postponed! How do we roar for rare in the midst of a crisis? 1

At CamRARE our focus is on raising awareness and building networks to address the unmet needs of those affected by rare disease and the professionals that work with them.  So how do organisations like ours maintain momentum during this extended period of lockdown?  

We create original and inspiring events, we collaborate with other engagement teams to drive rare disease onto mainstream  agendas to reach wider audiences, we attend and exhibit at others’ events and help promote these. The world of rare is used to operating in challenging circumstances but none more so than right now.

In recent days we have all found ourselves in the midst of a global pandemic with COVID-19,  a virus to which we have no immunity, having an unprecedented impact on health systems, businesses and on the way we live our lives, both locally and on a  global scale.

In order to slow the infection transmission rate and avoid overwhelming our health services, we are experiencing a seismic shift in our ability to travel freely with many parts of the world  imposing restrictions and bans.  As a direct result we are seeing large numbers of events being postponed and cancelled.  The impact on the rare disease community’s opportunities for sharing research and breakthroughs in drug development, for patients and their advocates to have a voice and for networking and collaborations to be made, cannot be underestimated.

 

vent ORGANISERS FEELING THE PINCH

In addition to the lost opportunities for sharing and networking, charities and organisations like ours, for whom events are their bread and butter, are just some of the many being hit hard by the huge financial burden of mass cancellations. Very few event organisers will have had insurance for communicable diseases and will be left to foot the bill for lost deposits and reimbursing speaker’s and attendee’s travel and accommodation costs. Of course the impact stretches way beyond the organisers with local communities also losing out to loss of footfall and many small businesses, from printers, designers, catering and AV hire to security firms, feeling the pinch.

At CamRARE we have recently had the cancellation of the RCPCH Conference and exhibition 2020 where we were excited to be hosting a half-day symposium with fellow rare disease champions BPSU, Medics 4 Rare Diseases, Findacure and Rare Revolution Magazine. Dr Richard Lynn from the BPSU is disappointed but remains optimistic:

It is with great sadness that the first official collaborative event between our five organisations has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is clear from the interest the event was generating along with the speed and willingness of speakers to sign up, that there is an appetite for such events aimed at paediatric trainees. Watch this space – the collaboration goes on.

Dr Richard Lynn, BPSU (British Paediatric Survelliance Unit)

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Day-by-day we are being given new directives by the UK government, bracing ourselves for the next set of restrictions, trying to pre-empt and plan to best protect our delegates, employees and society as a whole. Factor in that we work within the rare disease community, a group that is classed as a high-risk and particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus, this is a hugely important time for us to review how we can continue to raise awareness and build networks whilst social distancing and self-isolation is being advocated and implemented to protect us.

IS THIS CRISIS THE CATALYST WE NEED TO DELIVER TRULY ACCESSIBLE EVENTS?

The rare disease community can find travel problematic at the best of times:  the expense incurred; the time it takes up;  difficulties with managing a condition and medication when travelling; issues with mobility and accessibility.  In a fair and accessible world we would be offering everyone an equally do-able pathway to take part in our event, whether in person on virtually.

Could this current crisis be the catalyst we needed to make events better for all and to reach a far wider audience than is physically able to attend?  Rather than traditional face-to-face conferences and classrooms for learning, will we hold more events via social media channels, live stream conferences and give those attending from home or work the technology to engage meaningfully?  Will MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) become even more popular  and online learning platforms replace the classroom?

At our last two summits we have made some inroads into engaging an audience outside of the lecture theatre by allowing people to attend via Glisser technology and take part in the Q+A. We even tried out No Isolation’s AV1 avatar allowing a parent advocate to attend from Scotland through a robot perched on stage. It all went swimmingly well until the robot began to heckle the speaker! There is certian appetite for change and this feels to us like an opportunity to do better for our patients and to be more flexible in our offerings.

THe Meaning of “grasp the nettle” in English

is to force yourself to be brave and do something that is difficult or unpleasant.

In most organisations and charities there is never enough time or resources to do everything we know we should do, so we prioritise.  Perhaps the current lockdown will provide some breathing space to refocus some of our awareness raising efforts and invest in those aspects of our work which we’ve been putting off?

Social distancing means people are spending more time in their homes with many feeling isolated and turning to digital platforms to keep in touch and stay informed. This could be a great time to invest in your digital marketing campaigns and raise awareness through these channels.

Online learning platforms

Findacure, a Cambridge-based rare disease charity,  are leading the way with their e-learning portal, a central hub of information and training for rare disease advocates and patient groups. Here they host educational materials including animated videos, webinars and written guides. Perhaps there is more we could all be doing to provide high quality educational experiences on online platforms?

 

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virtual conferences the future?

In recent years there has been an increasing presence of virtual events and the COVID-19 health crisis has spurred a number of organisations to adapt and move their conference online rather than cancel.  Two brilliant examples are the EyeforPharma 3 day event which was due to take place in Barcelona last week and Eurordis’s ECRD event taking place mid May (check out our events calendar for registration details).  As rare disease teams are contemplating next steps, will they grasp this opportunity to look to the future and decide to move more events online to improve accessibility and reduce their financial risk?

 

In May, CamRARE was due to run rare disease expert talks as part of the international  Pint of Science festival. This has been rearranged for early September, but if this proves impossible, perhaps we could move to Glisser Live,  an enterprise software service solution engaging with audiences, gathering data from live and virtual events and pushing out events live to mobile devices?

Other such as Eden Lord, Founder of My City Med and parent of a child with a rare condition, is already ahead of the crowd.  My City Med is an online health and medical site but they also run a growing and successful online event, Rare Fair, a truly inclusive event for the rare disease community which is entirely virtual and draws in rare patients, caregivers, advocates, non-profits, healthcare professionals, researchers and other stakeholders from around th world.  Eden also facilitates other non-profits to host their own virtual conferences through My City Med Events and we’ll be taking  a demo of the platform so as to be as prepared to take our own flagship event, RAREfest20, online on Nov 27 and 28th if needed. 

 

FUNDRAISING ONLINE

As well as cancelled events, charities are also feeling the pressure of missed opportunities to fundraise with events like the London Marathon cancelled. Virtual fundraising events such as online quizzes are gaining popularity with companies enabling charities and supporters to schedule fully hosted online events which can be played virtually from the comfort of peoples’ homes.

In these incredibly challenging times, it is important that we adapt to the changing environment protecting and looking after our rare community and that we continue to raise awareness and create stimulating  ways to stay connected, now more than ever.

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Unique Feet: Life may not be the party we’d hoped for …

Unique Feet: Life may not be the party we’d hoped for …

by | Dec 10, 2019 | Community, Activities, Patient Groups, Unique Feet

” Life may not be the party we’d hoped for, but while we’re here we should dance! “

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In 2015, in response to an invitation to take part in a charity ball, CamRARE took the step to create a small Cambridge based dance group for children with a range of rare conditions as a place where they could express themselves. Little did we know just how powerful this group would become, not only for the young people who take part,  but for the whole family. Human connections really are what makes the world go around and our Unique Feet are leading the way.

Since Oct 2017 we have been supported through funding from the People’s Health Trust and Health Lottery and in 2020 by Healx, local drug repurposing company for rare diseases, to build the group to 10 families. Twelve fabulous children and young people strong, we have branched out into all sorts of fun activities including horse riding, cycling, canoeing, yoga, climbing, trips to the seaside and picnics at National Trust parks. We annually go to the Panto and have family meals out allowing our children safe experiences they can share together, sometimes accompanied by extended family and siblings making for a true family affair. 

We spoke with a CamRARE Trustees and Unique Feet members Sue Berry, Alison Omand-Lewis and Tracey Murray to find out more…

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I got involved when Jo Balfour (CamRARE Ops Manager) contacted me, knowing my son had a rare genetic condition, with an idea to gather a group of similar children to dance at the SOBI Ball in Cambridge. My son agreed (even though he has huge coordination issues and was the only boy). We became one of the 4 original families involved. The children were all very different but really pulled together with their teachers to shine at their performance in April 2016. The children really got along and enjoyed each other’s company, as did the parents sitting chatting during rehearsals. 

 It’s been great to see the group grow since 2017 when we received grant support.

Both my son and I have found friendship, understanding and non-judgemental support. We have a like-minded group of families that, although all the children have different needs and strengths, understand the challenges that rare conditions can place on a family. Socialising and having others at the end of a phone allows confidence and self-esteem to be built, or we can just have a chat when it is needed. Eric has been able to try new activities and experience new challenges. Unique Feet has also allowed me to be educated and increase my knowledge about rare diseases and the complexity of how others have to deal with them.


My son is more confident and willing to try things that he would never have dreamt of doing. He is sociable within the group, in his own way, and looks forward to the meetups. He attends the Unique Feet ‘You Can Bike too’ sessions at Milton Country Park. Amazingly someone saw the photos on social media and contacted me……… after discussions they agreed to help fund a trike for Eric! We now regularly cycle as a family, something we were never able to do before which has been life-changing for us.


Now I am helping with organising, coordinating and facilitating family activities for Unique Feet both in the school holidays and during term time. These are usually fortnightly, although during rehearsals for performances it can be daily/weekly. There are also occasions when a family might need different support, for EHCP/education matters or general family support and I’m always happy to help out then too.

Alison and Eric Omand-Lewis

My daughter Eleanor was one of the first group of dancers that formed Unique Feet. The children were highly anxious at the beginning and we struggled to even get them into the room! However, by the end of the first session, a wonderful warm friendship had begun which has continued to blossom. The group is truly inclusive with everyone really having the opportunity to learn how to express themselves within their own abilities.


The big takeaway from this group, however, is the benefit to the whole family. We found the support from other parents an enormous help, especially during Eleanor’s transition to secondary school where we faced a big battle. Having other parents who had been through a similar process, guide us was invaluable.


It is wonderful to watch our young people forming friendships and supporting each other and being able to benefit from friends who see them for who they are and who don’t see the disabilities in one another.

Tracey & Eleanor Murray

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We got involved with Unique Feet around 18 months ago after Jo contacted me for probably the 10th time. Originally, I didn’t think the group was for us, but Jo is very persuasive, and we decided to come along to take part in the performance for RAREfest18. This is when we realised what else the group was involved with and all the amazing support it has to offer. My daughter Charlotte has really enjoyed the cycling and horse riding, but it has also been a great opportunity to be involved with other families in the local area.


The benefits go much further than just enjoying the dancing and activities, having that opportunity to connect with other mums and dads and boost moral or get advice is brilliant. When you spend a lot of time battling with schools or medical professionals you can run out of energy and the group have this ability to give you the courage to keep going. It gives you time to work through things and form a plan for moving forward.


There is also great sense of humour and banter and it is important to remind each other we aren’t just mums but are also working people, wives and of all the other things we are and to have that perspective so you don’t get caught up in only your child and their condition all of the time.


It is nice to have the regular and local aspect to it. It can be important to find others that have the same conditions to understand the disease more or its progression, but in reality, these families can be widely spread meaning regular interaction isn’t easy to achieve. This group is not about that. We want to be able to meet up regularly and do things with families local to us who understand our family.

Sue & Charlotte Berry

Now that our People’s Health Trust funding has come to an end, we have been organising fundraising activities and applying for new grants and we  will continue to offer activities and days out for the families. As the group has a wide age range, we will be spending time this year finding out what our young people want to achieve and may split the group to allow the older members the opportunity of more independent outings (although an adult will be close by). This could be the theatre/bowling/meals out etc. We feel that this is vital in helping them develop life skills and have the chance to do so in a group they are comfortable with.

More than fun activities and friendship!

Our Unique Feet group has grown to be an impressively empowered group of children, young people and parents. Over the last few years they’ve taken up opportunities to spread the word about rare disease and champion the unmet needs of those affected. Four families have told their story on BBC Look East, three have been featured in the Cambridge Independent newspaper, one appeared on BBC Cambridge Radio at a BBC Children in Need event and others have championed the cause through talking in school assembly and running fundraisers. Mum’s are actively involved in learning and networking by attending our educational events and conferences whilst two have become trustees, one of CamRARE and the other of our spin-out organisation the Rare Disease Nurse Network. Allison now co-ordinates the Unique Feet group too. This is community involvement at its best!

Although some of our children are less mature than other teenagers, we are looking at ways that they can experience outings together with a degree of independence. They are such a lovely support for each other and help keep each other out of trouble.

Sue Berry

We also hope to be able to expand our educational programme, spreading the voice of rare disease within schools and the community.

I personally would like to be able to advocate for families who have a rare child, when they are in need of help with schooling/applying for an Education Health Care Plan.

Alison Omand-Lewis

One thing is clear that the benefits of Unique Feet go much further than an opportunity for young people to express themselves though dance. The holistic benefits to the wider family are just as important as is the opportunity for life-long friendships between the young people who take part.
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Bios

Tracey Murray is a trustee and part of the Rare Disease Nurse project. an organisation founded and spun out to independence by CamRARE. As a qualified nurse Tracy brings invaluable experience to this project.

Joining the CamRARE team as a trustee in July 2019 Sue Berry brings many years of product development for a leading retail brand as her background, supporting the development of our future focus and strategy.

Alison Omand-Lewis is one of the founding members of Unique Feet, now leading the coordination of the group activities. Alison is passionate about supporting families with the challenges of education and health care plans.

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RAREfest18 “heartwarming, uplifting, informative”

RAREfest18 “heartwarming, uplifting, informative”

by | Jan 11, 2019 | Activities, Community, Events, Med tech, Patient Groups, Raising awareness, RAREfest, Research, Technology

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Heartwarming, uplifting and informative, RAREfest18, the world’s first-ever festival on rare diseases drew huge crowds to the Guildhall over the weekend of November 30 & December 1.

 RAREfest18 was the first of its kind; a rare disease inspired festival, created and delivered by Cambridge Rare Disease Network, bringing passionate and inspirational people together to change the rare disease landscape for the better.

The event set out to raise awareness, share information and dispel some of the myths about rare diseases and the plight of those living with them. Rare diseases affect around 3.5 million people in the UK. Despite this, rare diseases are not consistently diagnosed, treated or supported, effectively and knowledge amongst health care professionals, educators, social care and the public is limited. The need for a powerful emotive programme was identified; speakers, exhibitors and performers at RAREfest had one goal in mind: change the rare disease landscape. Annual summits and events by CamRARE have consistently been milestone events in the rare disease community but bringing a rare disease event to an already invested community has a certain security. This time we wanted to tackle the more challenging issue of public perception of rare disease.

RAREfest was to be our most ambitious event to date!

This year’s unique RAREfest event was created for the public, in part due to the disparity between actual facts and public awareness of rare diseases. For example, while research has shown that only 38% of people think rare diseases have no treatment, in reality this figure is 95%. The aim of the festival was to bring about meaningful and positive change in as many ways as possible for the rare disease community – from raising broader awareness and promoting understanding, to providing practical support. Over two free days, RAREfest provided a stimulating mix of science, technology and the arts, with motivational speakers from academia, industry, the media and all importantly, patient advocates.

The educational programme was enriched with interactive exhibits, demos and film, all public-facing, promoting inclusivity to widely raise the profile of rare disease. CamRARE created a platform from which the rare disease community itself was in charge of their own narrative with which to educate and engage a public audience.  Read the glittering review from Cambridge independent newspaper here https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/rarefest-brings-life-sciences-to-guildhall-9056317/

Friday night launch event

On the evening of 30th November 2018 over 200 attendees listened attentively as Alastair Kent, OBE, former Chairman of CamRARE, opened the world’s first rare disease festival with a poignant observation:

“A few years ago, it would not have been possible to have filled a hall like this (Cambridge Guildhall)”

Attendees were subtly educated whilst being entertained during AbbiBrown’s presentation, Growing up with a Galapagos Tortoise: and other funny stories. Abbi, a founding member of CamRARE who, by her own admission left Cambridge University with two degrees and wheelchair, explained what life had been like for her growing up with osteogenesis imperfecta (Brittle Bones) relaying stories of her time as cox for her college rowing team.

Adam Pearson, award winning campaigner, actor and presenter and sculptress Dagmar Bennett talked about the process of creating Adam’s life size bust to raise awareness about Neurofibromatosis, a rare genetic disorder that causes tumours to form on nerve tissue, and to champion face equality.

We are bombarded every day by media images of how we should look, for people with disfigurement it can be absolutely paralysing

Adam Pearson

The audience were captivated by an enchanting dance performance from Unique Feet, CamRARE’s local community group of 10 children, each with a different rare disease, and the talented classical musician James Risdon who gave a mesmerising recorder performance. James lives with a rare eye disease, Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis, and learns all his repertoire through braille.

The evening ended with an awe-inspiring talk by Michael McGrath who led polar expeditions to both North and South poles to raise awareness of Muscular Dystrophy, a degenerative disease which has led to Michael himself being the proud owner of a technical masterpiece of a power chair to enable him to take on such challenges and be as independent as possible. Michael’s work through The Muscle Help Foundation ensures children affected by muscular dystrophy can experience life changing adventures of their own.

The evening was a resounding success, bringing together a diverse public audience mixed with rare disease advocates to walk in the shoes of those living with rare conditions through humour, dance, music and inspiring presentations. Read the Cambridge Independent news coverage of the event here.

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Saturday’s Roundup

Saturday saw around 800 curious people weaving their way through the Guildhall to engage with all that RAREfest had to offer. Families with small children, teenagers who’d taken part in the CamRARE RAREsolutions design competition, local students, health professionals and business representatives alongside a tribe of rare disease patients and advocates from across the UK.

Nine incredible speakers enthralled audiences. Dan Jeffries told the colourful story of life with not one, but two rare diseases, Acromegaly and Wyburn-Mason Syndrome. Rebecca Pender shared a heart-breaking account of her struggle to persuade medical professionals believe her accounts of her daughter’s illness, a rare chromosome deletion and duplication syndrome called 8p. The Cambridge Independent captured the power of Rebecca’s story here. Dr Crystal Ruff, a scientist from Illumina delivered a fascinating talk on changing the future with stem cells, a TED talk she has had thousands of hits on, Prof Anna Middleton from the Wellcome Genome Campus tackled the ethical considerations of ownership of DNA data playing on the topical story of the announcement only 2 days before of the Chinese scientist who had gene-edited twins. Read more about her talk in this newspaper article here.

Film Festival
Over 25 charities and research organisations entered our very first film festival gathering over 3500 upvotes between them and the highest scoring fourteen being shown on a big screen over the Saturday.

Exhibitors
Twenty-two interactive exhibits took over the Guildhall bringing rare disease inspired cool technology, arts and science to the public. With demos of robots and technology, fun science experiments, sculpture exhibits and rare disease charities showcasing some of the amazing work they do, the diverse audience was treated to a packed day of hands on activities to help educate and inspire.

Networking
There were many opportunities throughout both events to network with peers. The post RAREfest VIP reception drew together eighty leaders from science, healthcare, technology, business, charity and philanthropy to network with exhibitors, speakers and the CamRARE team. Dame Mary Archer, a fierce advocate for a Cambridge Children’s Hospital, Julian Rayner, Director of the Wellcome Genome Campus and Daniel Zeichner our Cambridge MP attended, to name a few.

So how did we do?
After the dust has settled and we are now and truly well into the count down for RAREsummit we wanted to look back and digest the impact of our very first public facing event. 

 

Here are some stats from RAREfest 2018

RAREfest in Numbers

  • Four new industry partners joined our Companies Forum for biotech, pharmaceutical and related industry partners
  • 25% increase in Twitter followers
  • 8000 people reached via Facebook event
  • 11 newspaper and magazine feature articles
  • 1 TV feature
  • 1 Radio Feature

The event was absolutely fantastic. It was obvious how much hard work had gone into it and gaining the balance between industry and public interest must have been a tough navigation, which was pulled off unbelievably well.

Steve Smith

Head of Rare Diseases & Gene Therapy

Lots of people we’ve spoken to today are passers-by. They’re out doing their Christmas shopping. That’s wonderful because it means the topic is broadening out to the wider community.

Harriet Gridley

Head of business development UK at No Isolation

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Findacure Cambridge Rare Disease Showcase

Findacure Cambridge Rare Disease Showcase

by | Jul 21, 2018 | Activities, Community, Events

Findacure’s Annual Cambridge rare disease Showcase is back on 16th August.

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Findacure are also looking for daring individuals to take on their infamous five-minute lightning talk challenge. If you have an exciting project to announce, a personal rare disease experience, or a unique approach to rare disease research, why not share it at their event? Calls for lightning talks are open until Friday 27th July and can be submitted during registration.

Tickets are available now by visiting www.findacure.org.uk/cambridge-showcase and attendance is free to patients, patient groups and charities.

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People’s Health Trust grant makes a world of difference to our Unique Feet group

People’s Health Trust grant makes a world of difference to our Unique Feet group

by | May 28, 2018 | Activities, Community, Fundraising, Unique Feet

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In autumn 2017 we were delighted to be funded by a People’s Health Trust grant using money raised by Health Commit through the Health Lottery to help grow and develop our Unique Feet children’s activity group. People’s Health Trust is an independent charity funded by 51 local society lotteries and the money they raise through The Health Lottery and we are honoured to have received their support.

We’ve welcomed new members of all ages over the last few months and have been getting involved in all sorts of fun. The group began by meeting weekly for yoga sessions with Emily, our trusted Unique Feet supporter who has worked with us from it’s first steps in 2016.
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So why yoga?

As our poster explains, yoga helps children to develop greater body awareness, improves attention span, supports them to develop muscle tone, flexibility, circulation and lung capacity.

The health benefits are significant but benefits come also in their confidence and they learn new skills and surprise themselves at what they can achieve together.  Most of all they have a chance to meet together and have fun!

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The better weather has allowed the group to move on to outdoor activities now and they’ve been taking part in the weekly You Can Bike Too project. This is a brilliant award winning, all-ability cycling project delivered at Milton Country Park and the only project of its kind in Cambridge.

There are a wide range of bikes to suit individuals or groups which are great fun to try.  We’ve been trying out the colourful array of specially adapted bikes to help those with disabilities to take to their wheels and to support others to build confidence in riding.

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Cambridge Rare Disease Network - People's Health Trust grant makes a world of difference to our Unique Feet group 39
Cambridge Rare Disease Network - People's Health Trust grant makes a world of difference to our Unique Feet group 40
Siblings joined us for a Christmas Party, and for bouncing fun at xtreme 360 trampoline park at Easter and there are horse-riding lessons planned for the summer term.  So much fun to look forward too!

It’s wonderful to see friendships and community developing amongst our local families living with rare conditions who can often feel isolated. The group is a wide mix of children of different ages and all with different conditions.

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Pint of Science Festival welcomes rare disease!

Pint of Science Festival welcomes rare disease!

by | May 20, 2018 | Activities, Community, Events, Healthcare, Raising awareness, Research

CamRARE hosts a rare disease themed pub for the annual international pint of science festival…

Pint of Science is a non-profit organisation that brings some of the most brilliant scientists to your local pub to discuss their latest research and findings with you.

In 2012 Dr Michael Motskin and Dr Praveen Paul were two research scientists at Imperial College London. They began by organising an event called ‘Meet the Researchers’. It brought people affected by Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis into their labs to show them the kind of research they do. It was inspirational for all involved.

They thought “if people want to come into labs to meet scientists, why not bring the scientists out to the people?” And so Pint of Science was born.

In May 2013 they held the first 3-day festival in Cambridge, London and Oxford.

Our events manager, Jo Balfour, co-hosted the Cambridge Neuroscience pub that first year in collaboration with Dr Hannah Critchlow, author of Ladybird Expert Series book, Consciousness.

Pint of Science quickly took off around the world and now happens in nearly 300 cities covering all manner of scientific topics.

We were delighted to be given the opportunity to host a rare disease themed pub in Cambridge during the festival!

“Why not bring the scientists to the people?” 

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Taking a break from the science, speakers Dr Lucy Raymond, Dr Jagtar Singh Nijjar and PhD student Patrick Short help the winning team show off their gummy bear DNA bases model 

The chance to host a pub, at an international festival with 19,500 twitter & 21,000 facebook followers, helped us put rare firmly on the menu

We hosted two evenings at Cambridge’s trendy drinking hole, Thirsty.  Both nights were sold out and we packed into their back room to hear about exciting research into rare disease taking place on our doorstep and personal stories of living with rare disease. Our speakers ranged from well know Cambridge rare disease expert Dr Lucy Raymond to emerging shining light, PhD student Patrick Short.  A huge thank you to all of their speakers for their fascinating talks, their personal stories and for getting involved in the fun.

For the full line up, speaker bios and talk synopses click on the links below.

Treasure Your Exceptions

Rare Disease: The Genomic Revolution, Searching for Cure for the 1 in 17

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Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour

Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour

by | Apr 2, 2018 | Activities, Community, Events, Patient Groups, Technology

Summit Patient Journey poster creators and Unique Feet parents on tour at the Wellcome genome campus. 

As part of our #CamRARE2017 summit, 33 rare disease patient groups and individuals created posters for exhibition and inclusion in a Patient Journey poster book. As a thank you and an opportunity to meet others and to continue to learn, the Cambridgeshire based Wellcome Genome Campus Engagement Team treated them and some of our Unique Feet group parents to a fascinating presentation, a guided tour and delicious lunch.

Dr Steve Scott from the Public Engagement Team delivered an interesting introductory talk about the history of and the pioneering work being undertaken at the Wellcome Genome Campus.  Following Prof Matthew Hurles treated the group to a fascinating and informative presentation and discussion about the DDD Deciphering Developmental Disorders project. 

The group were full of curiosity and questions and we wished we could have stayed all day! 

Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour 46
Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour 47
It was interesting to hear how they were re-looking at those not diagnosed the first time round and getting more results
Sue

Pitt Hopkins UK

Being a lay person I found the content easy to follow and definitely learned new information. 
Angela

Action Duchenne

Amazing! Really interesting and wish we had more time. It would be great for them to give us more understanding – why do genes go wrong? 
Sue

Unique Feet parent

What lessons were learnt from the DDD project?

Exome sequencing is cost effective for diagnosis now
Sequencing parents enables rapid, accurate interpretation
Sharing data across centres:
increases the accuracy of diagnosis
increases discovery of new genes
model for translational research in other disease areas
Informatics underpinning is essential
Up front capture of clinical information is critical
Expert-curated knowledge underpins clinical interpretation
Regular re-interpretation of undiagnosed patients
Barriers to translation into existing NHS genetics services

Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour 48
Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour 49
Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Wellcome Genome Campus Lecture and Tour 50

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Rare Disease Day 2018 Addenbrooke’s Concourse

Rare Disease Day 2018 Addenbrooke’s Concourse

by | Mar 1, 2018 | Activities, Community, Events, Rare Disease Day

Cambridge Rare Disease Network - Rare Disease Day 2018 Addenbrooke's Concourse 51
Kay and Jo at Addenbrookes concourse meeting the staff and public

Some of the CamRARE team headed to Addenbrookes to celebrate Rare Disease Day 2018 by meeting patients, visitors and staff with other rare disease advocates at the concourse.

CamRARE’s Kay Parkinson and Jo Balfour took shelter from the snow to spend a busy few hours with other charities and departments from CUH chatting to patients, visitors and staff at Addenbrookes concourse in celebration of Rare Disease Day.

We’re always amazed by people’s curiosity, their personal stories and the knowledge we can share and gain from these kinds of interactions. Thanks for stopping by!

It was a great opportunity to let people know about our joint CamRARE/NIHR BioResource lecture event later that evening too.  Read our next blog post to see who our guest speakers were.

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Unique Feet: a contemporary dance group for children with rare diseases

Unique Feet: a contemporary dance group for children with rare diseases

by | May 12, 2016 | Activities, Community, Unique Feet

We often think of rare diseases in medical terms and it’s easy to lose sight of the children and families at the heart of our work. So, for the recent charity ball hosted by Sobi, the CamRARE formed a contemporary dance group – ‘Unique Feet’ – featuring children with rare diseases.

The kids rehearsed together weekly for several months, and over that time a lovely sense of community has emerged. We hope to continue this… stay tuned!
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