Mr Panos Englezos, TIF President, and Dr Androulla Eleftheriou, TIF Executive Director, represented the Thalassaemia International Federation at the opening day of the 15th Annual Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia (ASCAT) & 1st EHA European Sickle Cell Conference, which is held online from the 26 to 31 October 2020.
This year’s ASCAT theme is ‘Haemoglobinopathies: Emerging Challenges & Future Therapies’.
Mr Englezos and Dr Eleftheriou took part in the 2nd session of the Conference and, using the example of TIF, they elaborated on the added value of patient organisations for national and international advocacy. ΤIF’s President made an interesting historical review of both the birth of the Federation and the creation of the first patient organizations for haemoglobin disorders, whilst Dr Eleftheriou underscored the challenges that are yet to be addressed globally with regard to the burden of thalassaemia and sickle cell disease for patients.
Dr Eleftheriou and Mr George Constantinou, TIF Board Member and Expert Patient will also be involved in the 10th session of ASCAT to be held on 30 October, when they will discuss the global epidemiology of thalassaemia and the current unmet patient needs.
More about the ASCAT Conference:
ASCAT is one of the most awaited events for scientists, consultants, nurses, and all relevant experts on haemoglobin disorders.
The event constitutes an ideal opportunity to see the latest advances in diagnosis, treatment and emerging fields in haemoglobinopathies and interact on the latest advances in clinical care, transition services and emerging new therapies, including updates for curative treatment options.
