In honor of Rare Disease Day arriving this month, the Organization for Rare Disease India (ORDI) has set up Racefor7 races in both Benefaluru, Mumbai as well as Washington D.C. with hopes to fundraise and bring awareness to the community, reported Cision PR Newswire. The event will be taking place on February 25th, 2018 with hopes of a give turnout.
The Racefor7 event is a 7K walk, representing the 7,000 different rare diseases that exist and affecting over 350 million individuals in the world. Thirty million of those patients are just in the United States, as well as 70 million in India. ORDI has expressed how poor India’s health system remains to be, and the rare disease community has been impacted dramatically. They hope this event can be a big step towards change and bring about hope to those suffering from incurable and untreatable diseases.
William Gahl, a Ph.D and honored guest at the event expressed how this is a special time for the rare disease community. It’s one time during the year that people who feel on the outside in this world, can come together and be celebrated. It’s a beautiful thing.
Gahl also shared that these patients have spent too much of their lives just trying to figure out what the problem is, rather than treating it. Not only does Gahl hope this to be a successful event for celebration, awareness and fundraising, but he hopes that some prosperous introductions and collaborations come about and initiate changes for the community.
