News & Updates

Rare disease researchers, clinicians, patient advocates and data experts are invited to help shape four new IRDiRC activities linked to the new IRDiRC Roadmap, with applications closing on 20 February 2026.
The RealiseD project launched a new multi-stakeholder survey that invites the rare disease community to share insights and help improve clinical trial enrolment
13 January – 10 February 2026 | Online webinar series to advance best practices in clinical trial design for rare and ultra rare diseases.
A funding opportunity for neuromuscular and rare genetic disease research is now open
EMA seeks stakeholder input on new reflection paper to reduce and replace non‑human primate use in medicines safety testing through 3Rs approaches.
Eighteen international pre clinical therapy projects selected under ERDERA’s first Joint Transnational Call will accelerate treatment options for people living with rare diseases across Europe and beyond
On 13 November in Milan, EMA’s expert committee backs Italy’s first home‑grown gene therapy for people in Europe living with Wiskott–Aldrich Syndrome.
Three days in Brussels help advance the European Declaration on Rare and Complex Diseases
Feb
03
Tuesday,
05:00 pm-06:30 pm
online

Help Shape the Future of Rare Disease Evidence Generation!

Feb
10
Tuesday,
05:00 pm-06:30 pm
online

Join Our Upcoming Webinar: Putting Patients at the Center of Rare Disease Clinical Trials

Feb
25
Wednesday,
01:00 pm-02:00 pm
online

A short webinar to launch a new, friendly guide to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in Public and Patient Involvement (PPI).

Mar
02
- 01
Jul
Monday,
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
hybrid

The training responds to the growing need for patient advocates to understand data management, ethical considerations and the role of AI in rare disease research.

Mar
05
- 06
Mar
Thursday,
All day
onsite
Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia

The two-day event will focus on translating research and policy initiatives into tangible benefits for Rare Disease patients through better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.

May
12
- 13
May
Tuesday,
All day
onsite

Join the leading international drug repurposing conference to explore the future of patient-centric medicines repurposing!

Jun
03
- 04
Jun
Wednesday,
All day
hybrid

The next ECRD will take place on 3–4 June 2026 in Prague under the title “Rare Diseases in a Changing & Competitive Europe: Shaping policies to address the unmet needs of people living with rare diseases”.

Jun
09
- 22
Jun
Tuesday,
All day
onsite

More than 280 speakers from industry, regulators, patient organisations, investors and healthcare providers, and aims to showcase new science, technologies and policies that can accelerate orphan drug development and improve access to therapies for people living with rare conditions.

When it comes to rare diseases, more than 70% have a genetic origin. To truly understand these conditions—and find ways to treat them—we need to start at the root: our DNA.
Significant health inequities pose challenges for those living with a rare disease
Outside traditional drug development pathways, clinicians and scientists face the challenge of systematically evaluating whether individual patients with severe ultrarare diseases might be eligible for and potentially benefit from individualized mutation-specific RNA therapies.
Using Morocco as a case study, this paper shows how underrepresented countries contribute unique genetic insights to rare disease research and why their integration into initiatives like ERDREA is essential for both scientific progress and equity.
With over 300 million people affected by rare diseases, timely access to effective therapies is critical. Despite strong alignment in regulatory expectations, patients in many regions face years of delays highlighting the need for improved international coordination.
PROTRIDER is a method for detecting aberrant protein expression from mass spectrometry data that outperforms existing approaches and identifies enrichments of pathogenic variants, supporting its application in rare disease diagnostics and cancer proteomics.
Regulatory sandboxes have emerged as an innovative mechanism to facilitate the development and approval of new technologies, including pharmaceuticals. Their application in the context of rare disease therapies presents a promising avenue to accelerate the development, approval, and access to disease-modifying and life-saving therapies. Given the complexities of rare diseases and the regulatory hurdles faced by orphan medicinal products, regulatory sandboxes offer a structured yet flexible environment where new regulatory approaches can be tested and refined.
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a rare, disabling pain disorder. Systematic reviews have identified a critical lack of high-quality clinical trial evidence to inform the management of CRPS. There is an urgent need to find solutions to the methodological challenges of undertaking clinical trials in CRPS. The aim of this project was to develop a methodological framework for optimising future clinical trials in CRPS (OptiMeth-CRPS).
The Solve-RD consortium demonstrates how structured multidisciplinary “Solvathons” can address the growing complexity of advanced omics diagnostics and improve collaborative rare disease diagnosis.
A new simulation framework leverages pharmacometrics to optimise clinical trial designs for disease-modifying treatments in rare neurological conditions.
Canonical splice-site TTN variants (TTNcsv) are linked to cardiac conduction disturbances, producing mostly non-truncating transcripts, unlike DCM-associated TTNcsv. These findings highlight variant-specific transcriptional effects and their potential role in cardiac phenotypes.

Shaping the future of rare disease research: insights from ERDERA

Launched in September 2024, ERDERA is already building strong momentum across the rare disease research landscape.

In this video, members of the ERDERA partnership reflect on what has been achieved so far, what the initiative represents for the wider rare disease research ecosystem, and the impact it is expected to have in the years ahead.

Hear insights from James Levine, Daria Julkowska, Bojana Mirosavljevic, and Milan Macek as they share their perspectives on collaboration, progress, and the future of rare disease research in Europe and beyond.

Watch the video!

ERDERA’s Networking Support Scheme – Ethics Self Assessment Tutorial

Are you preparing a proposal for the Networking Support Scheme?

This tutorial walks you through how to accurately complete the Ethics Self-Assessment Table, adapted from the Horizon Europe template.

Completing Section 9 for any other ethical issues relevant to your proposal. Whether you’re new to the application process or just need a refresher, this step-by-step guide will help ensure you meet the ethical requirements of your submission. Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe for more guidance on EU funding calls and application processes.

Together4RD x ERDERA: Launch of the Toolkit for Public-Private Partnerships in Rare Disease Research

The #Together4RD Toolkit is a new strategic resource to support effective, transparent, and impactful ERN-industry collaborations in #RareDisease research. Developed with input from both #ERN and industry, the Toolkit offers practical guidance, case studies, and tools to tackle legal, structural, and practical barriers to public-private partnerships.

Rare Disease Community | Tomasz Grybek

🗣 Throughout the week leading to Rare Disease Day 2025, we will be sharing insights from diverse voices highlighting key pathways to improving the lives of those affected. ️

Tomasz Grybek, carer, patient advocate, and Member Board of Directors of EURORDIS – a remarkable alliance of over 1,000 rare disease patient organisations from 74 countries – reminds us of the incredible strength and unity within the rare disease community.

Rare Disease Community | Dorica Dan

🗣 Throughout the week leading to Rare Disease Day 2025, we will be sharing insights from diverse voices highlighting key pathways to improving the lives of those affected. ️

In this video, Dorica Dan, rare disease carer and EURORDIS-Rare Diseases Europe Vice-Director, highlights the profound importance of early diagnosis for people living with a rare disease and their families – even when no treatment is available.

Rare Disease Community | Alexandre Méjat

🗣 Throughout the week leading to Rare Disease Day 2025, we will be sharing insights from diverse voices highlighting key pathways to improving the lives of those affected. ️

In this video, Alexandre Méjat, a rare disease patient, PhD scientist in the field of rare diseases, and EURORDIS Director, shares his invaluable insight on the vital role of data collection in achieving quicker diagnoses.

Our mission | Daria Julkowska, ERDERA Scientific Coordinator

For millions of people, rare diseases are more than just statistics—they are daily challenges, unanswered questions, and battles for better care. At ERDERA, our mission is simple but urgent: to improve the lives of over 30 million people living with rare diseases in Europe. In this video, Daria Julkoska, ERDERA’s Coordinator, explains the three essential ways how ERDERA plans to work towards a brighter future for people living with rare diseases.

ERDERA | The European Rare Diseases Research Alliance

To leave no one behind, over 170 organisations championed by the European Union and members states are working hand in hand to make Europe a world leader in rare diseases research and innovation. The European Rare Disease Research Alliance (ERDERA) takes over EJPRD to deliver concrete health benefits to rare disease patients in the next decade by advancing prevention, diagnosis and treatment research.