Aparito is delighted to announce that we have selected the first two organisations who we will be working with us as part of the Aparito Digital Endpoints Patient Group Accelerator Programme.

After an intense and thorough selection process, we are pleased to share with you that we will be working with Duchenne UK and PCD Family Support Group in the first phase of the accelerator programme

Duchenne UK, whose mission is to end Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy by funding and accelerating treatments and PCD Family Support Group, who support patients with Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD) and promote research to aid diagnosis and treatment, were selected from the outstanding list of applicants we had for the programme.

Both Duchenne UK and PCD Family Support Group are leading the way in finding effective treatments for their disease communities. Like many rare diseases they have faced challenges on that journey and with the co-creation of disease specific endpoints developed through the Aparito Digital Endpoints Patient Group Accelerator Programme there is the opportunity to make a huge impact on the clinical studies undertaken for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and PCD in the future.

“We are delighted that both Duchenne UK and PCD Family Support Group applied to our accelerator programme. The quality of applications we had from patient groups was very high and the team at Aparito went through a thorough selection process to ensure that we partnered with groups where we feel we can add maximum value to them. I’m very excited about what we can achieve with Duchenne UK and PCD Family Support Group, and as a company we just can’t wait to get started on the projects.”

Dr Elin Haf Davies, CEO of Aparito

Through the programme, Aparito will be working with both groups to:

  • Identify the disease hallmarks that are specific to that disease community.
  • Identify the best way to capture and measure those disease hallmarks.
  • Address any gaps in the development of new medicines or repurposed drugs.

“We’re so pleased to have been selected on Aparito’s Patient Group Accelerator programme. We will be working with them to address the high unmet need of the DMD community, by co-developing new digital endpoints for clinical trials, which can be collected digitally and remotely. We hope this will help DMD patients on clinical trials report their progress in a simpler, easier and more complete way.”

Emily Crossley, CEO of Duchenne UK

At a time when Covid-19 has turned the lives of people with PCD upside down, Aparito’s programme offers an exciting opportunity that is full of potential to develop a solution that meets our community’s current and future health needs. We know that those with PCD are having to adapt to video consultations and more distanced approaches to healthcare management, and so we look forward to exploring new opportunities for more long-term and effective monitoring of PCD.

Lucy Dixon, Chair of PCD Family Support Group

The Aparito Patient Group Accelerator Programme accepts rolling applications throughout the year. If the patient group you represent is interested in applying, please enter your details via the form on the Accelerator page.