The Faculty of Pharmacy Hosts the First International Conference on Rare Diseases in Egyptian Universities
The Faculty of Pharmacy at October University for Modern Sciences and Arts (MSA) together with the MSA Model WHO (MSA MWHO) organized the Third International Conference under the title:
“A Glimpse into Life-Threatening Rare Diseases and Their Impact on Mental Health and Physical Disability in Patients.”
Within the framework of Egypt’s National Health Strategy and Egypt Vision 2030, and as an extension of the “100 Million Health” initiatives, including the national campaign for the early detection of genetic diseases in newborns, this important event comes after Egypt’s active participation in the 78th session of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, in support of improving the lives of more than 300 million people worldwide who suffer from rare diseases.
The conference witnessed the presence of a distinguished group of speakers, leaders, and experts from various sectors:
-From the Ministry of Health and Population:
Prof. Dr. Mohamed Hassani – Assistant Minister of Health and Population for Health Projects and Initiatives.
-From the Egyptian Drug Authority:
Dr. Tamer El-Husseini – Vice President of the Egyptian Drug Authority.
-From the global and Egyptian industrial sector:
Dr. Sherif Roshdy – Head of the Medical Sector for Africa, Sanofi.
Dr. Rania Rafeek – Medical Director, Merck Healthcare.
Dr. Amr Tarek – Marketing and Sales Support Manager – HVD Egypt.
Dr. Assem El-Akabawy – Commercial Marketing Director, EIPICO.
Dr. Mohamed Youssef – Head of Biologics Product Line Development, Minapharm Pharmaceuticals.
-From the World Health Organization:
Dr. Raneen Suleiman – Consultant, Evidence and Data for Policy-Making, WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean.
Dr. Julia Aguilera – Founder of the WHO Model in Granada, Spain.
-From Egyptian physicians and experts:
Prof. Dr. Rasha Tareef Hamza – Head of the Pediatric Endocrinology and Obesity Unit – Ain Shams University.
Prof. Dr. Hesham Rami – Professor of Psychiatry – Ain Shams University.
Dr. Mayada Mounir Mahmoud El-Khodary – Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, Allergy, and Clinical Immunology – Ain Shams University.
-From Egyptian institutions for rare diseases:
Prof. Dr. Azza Abdel-Gawad Tantawy – Professor of Pediatrics, Hematology, and Oncology – Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University.
Prof. Dr. Gehan Fouad Ahmed – Former President of the National Nutrition Institute, and Member of the Rare Diseases Committee for Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Ministry of Health.
Mrs. Ghada Abdel-Salam Moneeb – Founder and Chairperson, For a Better Life Foundation.
-From international rare disease institutions:
Mr. Martin Norman – Founder of the Addison’s Disease Organization in Sweden and the Global Addison’s Team for Awareness.
Eng. Reham Badawy – CEO and Co-Founder of ALD Hope – Canada (Our Children Our Priority).
Alexandra Humbert Berry – CEO of the International Rare Diseases Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.
-From national initiatives and councils:
Eng. Amal Mobdey – CEO of “Differently Abled” Initiative.
Dr. Noha Abdel-Dayem – Head of the Education Department at the National Council for Persons with Disabilities.
From Cairo University, Faculty of Medicine:
Prof. Dr. Fatma El-Mougy – Professor of Clinical and Chemical Pathology.
Dr. Mohamed Abdel-Moneim – Professor of Clinical and Chemical Pathology.
Dr. Marwa El-Sharkawy – Professor of Clinical and Chemical Pathology, Molecular Research and Diagnostics Unit.
This conference is considered the first of its kind in Egyptian universities, and a historic step towards raising awareness of rare diseases and encouraging collaboration between the health, academic, and industrial sectors to support patients and improve their quality of life
