Stephen Hawking to open rare disease summit

Professor Stephen Hawking will open the inaugural Cambridge Rare Disease Summit, at the Cambridge Judge Business School on Monday 14 September

At the summit, hosted by the Cambridge Rare Disease Network, international experts will join local leaders to discuss innovative treatments for rare diseases.

The summit will bring together stakeholders involved in rare diseases, ranging from those working on drug development, data sharing and parent support, to biotech entrepreneurs, pharmaceutical companies and start-ups.

Kay Parkinson, CEO of the Cambridge Rare Disease Network (CRDN) said: “As parent to two children who were given a late diagnosis of the ultra rare Alström Syndrome, I think it’s crucial to foster dialogue, find solutions and increase awareness of the huge social and therapeutic unmet needs around rare diseases.”

The CRDN builds on the Cambridge area’s strengths in research and industry and on the success of the area’s biotech cluster.

The network is also looking to find alternative ways to fund drug discovery programs for rare diseases, often overlooked by more traditional financing due to the lack of large-scale reward.

To register for the event click here.