News

By February, eligible acute porphyria patients in England are expected to have access to Givlaari (givosiran) through the country’s National Health Service (NHS), for treating severe, recurrent disease attacks, according to an update from the British Porphyria Association. The announcement comes in the wake of a draft guidance…

The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technology in Health, called CADTH, has recommended that Givlaari (givosiran) be reimbursed by public plans — if certain conditions are met — when it’s used to treat adults with acute hepatic porphyria (AHP). One condition, according to CADTH, is that the therapy’s…

Global Genes has partnered with the Rare Disease Diversity Coalition (RDDC) to advance health equity for rare disease patients and caregivers in underrepresented communities of color. “For rare disease patients, there are many challenges — and for people of color with a rare disease, these challenges are compounded…

Long-term treatment with Givlaari (givosiran) is safe and provides sustained clinical benefits to people with acute hepatic porphyria (AHP), according to an interim, two-year analysis of a Phase 3 trial’s ongoing extension, presented at a science conference. These data are in line with previous trial findings, showing that the…

The Rare Disease Diversity Coalition (RDDC) awarded $600,000 in grants to ease the disparities faced by rare disease patients of color. These Impact Rare Disease Solution grants will go five RDDC steering committee working groups, which aim to identify problems for rare disease communities and advocate for solutions. The five…

Recurrent attacks in people with acute hepatic porphyria (AHP) are associated with lower lifetime earnings and pose a higher burden to public health, particularly in disability and healthcare costs, a Belgian study reports. Indeed, the costs of lifetime healthcare for patients in Belgium who are unable to work due…

A crowdfunding campaign aims to raise $45,000 to support “Rare,” a documentary film featuring the struggles and achievements of people living with rare diseases and their families. Sweis Entertainment and Digital Cave Media launched the campaign — allowing filmmakers to finish producing and to release the documentary — on Kickstarter.

A new U.S. initiative called Rare Disease Cures Accelerator–Data and Analytics Platform — dubbed RDCA–DAP — aims to accelerate treatment innovation across rare diseases by sharing existing patient data and promoting the standardization of new data collection. Launched during a virtual workshop in September, the U.S. Food and Drug…

A young pregnant woman was diagnosed with acute hepatic porphyria (AHP) after her urine was found to glow pink under ultraviolet (UV) light, as described in a recent case report. The woman’s symptoms were general, which often makes an early diagnosis difficult. A “simple method like urine examination under ultraviolet…

Football and science seem to be disparate fields of play at first glance, but the nonprofit Uplifting Athletes is finding common ground by leveraging the popularity of college gridiron games to fund research for rare diseases. Its nearly two dozen chapters — representing college football teams across the nation…