On March 3rd and 4th, SPI participated in the kick-off meeting of the Preventable project, held at i3S – Institute for Research and Innovation in Health from the University of Porto, where 46 participants from 15 different institutions and 8 different European countries met for the first time.
This project, funded in 4.6 million euros by Horizon Europe and coordinated by a Portuguese research team at i3S, will assess the clinical, social, and financial impacts of applying a multidisciplinary and specialized approach to prevent advanced disease in families suffering from rare tumour risk syndromes. The goal is to identify the potential benefits of preventive approaches (genetic diagnosis and surveillance of high-risk patients) for patients’ prognosis and for the existing financial burden on health systems and healthcare-related industries.
One of the main goals of the project is to make these rare diseases visible to society, raising awareness among patients, their relatives, and the general public. SPI is the partner responsible for communication, dissemination and exploitation activities. SPI is also responsible for developing workshops and webinars, which promote the outreach and open discussion of the project, involving patients and families, healthcare professionals and institutions, and policymakers.
The project aims at supporting the implementation of guidelines that improve the prognosis of patients and relatives affected by these hereditary syndromes, and that can make better use of the resources currently available in health systems.